Enter your email address to receive our daily LGBT news roundup

You're free to unsubscribe at any time.


Boy Scouts of America petitioned to change gay exclusion policy

Post your comment

Comments on this article are now closed.

Reader comments

  1. I find it somewhat amusing that the Scout Oath says nothing about being gay, but instead constantly refers to “being clean”. Thanks for the implications Boy Scouts of America!

    1. I am truly amazed, not to say ASTONISHED, that this organization has (and CAN have) these kinda rules & regulations – and can get away with it. Full blown discriminization it is, in my opinion. Wouldn’t even bother to apply to or stay with such idiotic mind-gangsters. At least not before I would have nailed them down to the gutter before leaving. Would lmaol if it wouldn’t be such a serious CRIME!!!

      1. Yes, I realize that the boy scouts MAY do some good for youth, but in general it has become a Mormon-front organization (a large number of dens are sponsored by Mormon churches), so I would not allow my children to be a part of it in any case. The people running it are disgusting.

  2. I am truly amazed, not to say ASTONISHED, that this organization has (and CAN have) such an IDIOTIC point of view and even puts it into their rules & regulations. COME ON!!!

    1. I think it’s pretty backward too but, as it’s not a publicly-funded or government organisation, part of me thinks they should be allowed to have the rules they choose to have. After all, many churches still don’t allow women to have positions of authority. I wouldn’t have a problem with a club wanting to be for gay men only, so I don’t really think I can object to another organisation making its own rules.

      1. David Waite 18 Apr 2012, 1:58pm

        In many U.S. towns and cities BSA receives sweetheart leases of $1 annually for the use of publicly owned properties which are maintained by our tax dollars. Yes they ARE publicly funded.

        1. Oh. Then it’s a different matter.

        2. Miguel Sanchez 18 Apr 2012, 2:52pm

          This is true and those “Public” buildings are being told by their parent organization that once the lease is up, it can not be renewed if they continue to discriminate.

      2. Miguel Sanchez 18 Apr 2012, 2:59pm

        You’re totally spot on point. This matter has been taken all the way to the US Supreme Court and the BSA (Backward Scouts of America, in my opinion) prevailed. Since they do not receive any public funding they legally can discriminate.

        I was a Boy Scout when I was a kid and when I was 13, I realized I was gay and had many of fun hours experimenting with other guys in my patrol. I found out that there were more boys willing to have a roll in the sleeping bag then I realized.

        I can only hope that the scouts will get their eyes open and allow gays but I’m not holding my breath.

        1. Miguel, you misunderstand the Supreme Court decision. The ruling was indeed that they could discriminate in their membership, but other federal court rulings have held that the public funding for them is illegal. I.e., as long as they do not receive public funding, they can discriminate. But they often do receive public funding, and in those cases they either have to give up the funding or agree not to discriminate. They have lost a lot of support from the United Way and other funders who have non-discrimination clauses, as well as support from cities that had given them tax-payer money in the form of sponsorships by agencies and sweetheart deals on public property.

  3. I am surprised by this, but not by much! I have known several souct leaders in London who are gay and it appeared to never be a problem, and quite rightly so!

    Good luck to those concerned in this story, they have a long road ahead of them in this new fight for equality!

    1. The UK Scouts openly welcome Gay leaders.

  4. Holy crap!

  5. If this article had been plagiarised by ‘reporter’ Stephen Gray, about 12 hours earlier then it would have reached an audience which may have been very interested in it.

    Howiever seeing as it was plagiarised at 11.42am GMT, then it clearly is of very little interest or relevance to the UK audience viewing this website at this time.

    Time for some shift work on Pink News,

    I suspect that the fact that so many stories are being copied from US based LGBT news websites, regardless of their relevance, is a sign that Pink News is in financual trouble.

    Alternativelly it means that the editor of the site is not very good at his / her job.

    Where is Jessica Geen these days by the way?

    1. David Waite 18 Apr 2012, 2:04pm

      Are you planning to bore us by spamming every PN comment thread with this same complaint today? The fact you’ve elicited this reply tells me you’re not very good at whineing (whinging), which will surprise no one here. I suspect you need a life, or are attempting to get PN to hire you as editor.

    2. Stephen Gray replaced Jessica Geen as editor in 2011.[3] according to Wikipedia.

    3. It’s hardly ‘breaking news’, what difference would it have made if it was published 12 hours earlier?

  6. the Boys Scouts? The Bigot Scouts more like. Anyone involved with this heinous organisation should be banned from taking part in any other organisation, except of course the Bigots in Chief in their churches.

  7. I’m speechless!? How can such a rule exist? Surley this rule isn’t universal?

    1. Its not universal. The Scouting Association in NZ (and I believe UK) openly welcome LGBT youth and leaders.

      1. The Scouting organization in Canada also welcomes all. The Boy Scouts in the US have become increasingly Southern and rural, and they reflect the ugliest values of those demographics.

  8. The UK Scouts are just as nasty but in a different way. They ban atheists from membership and from being leaders in any way. This is just as nasty.

    1. My ex is most definitely a church-hating atheist and ran a pack for five years. They are desperate for people to run the packs and not that fussy.

  9. The Scouts is a UK invention and if people are not willing to tow the line with the true original UK gay-friendly Scouts then they should not be allowed to call themselves Scouts.
