Timele: The Boy Suts’ Long History of Anti-Gay Discrimatn – Mother Jon

Contents:

• BOY SUTS LOST 2 LN MEMBERS SCE LIFTG BAN ON GAY YOUTH; NOW MIRED SEX ABE CLAIMS
• GAY BOY SUTS? WHAT HAPPENED TO OUR BOYS?
• CAN A GAY BOY SUT SHARE A TENT WH ANOTHER BOY? BOY SUTS SURVEY MEMBERS ON ANTI-GAY POLICY
• BOY SUTS OF AMERI LIFTS BAN ON GAY LEARS
• BOY SUTS' ACCEPTANCE OF GAY BOYS DRAWS HEATED REACTNS
• CHURCH MOVE TO CUT TI TO SUTS AFTER GAY POLICY CHANGE
• WILL THE BOY SUTS REVERSE ITS ANTI-GAY POLICY?
• BOY SUTS: WE'RE KEEPG POLICY BANNG GAYS
• BOY SUTS ARE POISED TO END BAN ON GAY LEARS
• TIMELE: THE BOY SUTS’ LONG HISTORY OF ANTI-GAY DISCRIMATN
• BOY SUTS VS. GAYS

BOY SUTS LOST 2 LN MEMBERS SCE LIFTG BAN ON GAY YOUTH; NOW MIRED SEX ABE CLAIMS

Had the BSA fired him, many people believe that their actns would have been vlatn of New York State Law and that ’s unlikely that the BSA would have been able to succsfully fend their ban on gay employe urt. The reasons ced by the AP for the recent drop membership is petn om sports leagu, a perceptn that the BSA is old fashned and the BSA, however, has been steadily losg members, particularly om nservative Christian fai, sce 2013, when adopted an amendment that effectively lifts the ban on homosexual youth the an terview wh The Christian Post that year, Elizabeth Prchard, the pack mtee chair for Pack 928 Southlake, Texas, warned that the vote would acture the anizatn and sre away members who disagreed wh the lg. Followg a two-year closed-door review, the Boy Suts of Ameri (BSA) has announced that will ntue wh s policy of excludg practicg homosexuals om membership and learship posns wh s ranks.

While the BSA has long been a target of homosexual activists termed to force the anizatn to accept “gay” lears, the issue me to a head May when Boy Sut officials removed Jennifer Tyrrell as the lear of a Cub Sut troop Bridgeport, Oh when they disvered that she was a lbian. Randall Stephenson is prently favored to take the reigns of the BSA executive board 2014, and will no doubt face heavy lobbyg om homosexual activists to change the group’s policy at that time.

“Wh the untry movg toward cln, the lears of the Boy Suts of Ameri have stead sent a msage to young people that only some of them are valued, ” said Chad Griff of the Human Rights Campaign, the natn’s premier homosexual activist group. Siarly, Darlene Nipper of the Natnal Gay and Lbian Task Force acced the Boy Suts of turng “their backs on a chance to monstrate fairns, exercise sound judgment, and serve as a role mol for valug others. The BSA policy is “vastatg and dangero, ” sisted Signorile, “bee at a time when we’ve seen latg reports of young people … takg their own liv, suicis by gay kids often victimized and btalized by bulli.

GAY BOY SUTS? WHAT HAPPENED TO OUR BOYS?

“Any parents good nsc [sic] mt realize what they are a party to by enrollg their kids an anizatn whose polici would help drive the hostily and vlence that gay kids experience every day this untry. Supporters of the BSA pot out that the proscriptn agast homosexuals the anizatn, which exists to build solid character and tegry young men, is extribly tied to the official Boy Sut Oath, which requir that the nduct of the group’s members — as well as s lears — rema “morally straight.

"The Human Rights Campaign appld the cisn but lled on BSA to extend to “full LGBTQ cln for both employe and volunteers, ” notg that the policy change allowg gay employe and volunteers did not extend to transgenr adults.

CAN A GAY BOY SUT SHARE A TENT WH ANOTHER BOY? BOY SUTS SURVEY MEMBERS ON ANTI-GAY POLICY

While acceptance and support for the rights of gays and lbians the Uned Stat has steadily grown over the past few s, some dividuals and anizatns have neverthels been slow to adapt their views to a changg society. While the BSA do not proactively quire about the sexual orientatn of employe, volunteers, or members, we do not grant membership to dividuals who are open or avowed homosexuals or who engage behavr that would bee a distractn to the missn of the BSA. "The Boy Suts of Ameri is one of the last cultural stutns to have discrimatn as part of their policy, " said Richard Ferraro, vice print for munitns wh the Gay and Lbian Alliance Agast Defamatn, notg that the Girl Suts, the Boys and Girls Clubs, the 4-H Clubs and now even the ary forbid discrimatn based on sexual orientatn.

In a more recent cint that has drawn wispread attentn, an openly gay 17-year-old Boy Sut named Ryan Andren om California was nied the rank of Eagle Sut - the anizatn's hight honor - bee of his sexualy. In our first public mpaign, we are vg current and former members of the sutg muny to share their stori about how the BSA's discrimatory policy regardg homosexual suts and sut lears has affected them orr to asss support for changg this policy om wh the sutg muny.

BOY SUTS OF AMERI LIFTS BAN ON GAY LEARS

” The are some of the qutns on a survey beg nducted by the Boy Suts of Ameri as the private youth anizatn prepar to ci whether should end s ntroversial policy banng gay Suts and lears. But this time, the BSA ed the survey to add qutns about the policy banng gays (those qutns went only to adults) spokman Deron Smh, who provid the qutns on the survey to NBC News, said an email that “the BSA is mted to dialogue on the topic of s membership standards policy, wh the Sutg fay at the lol and natnal levels. The Boy Suts’ policy has creasgly been a sore spot for the anizatn over the last year, followg the dismissal of a n lear bee she is a lbian and the nial of the Eagle Sut rank to a California teen bee he is gay.

Tristam HarrgtonWhen the BSA announced late January that may dch the natnal policy and stead let lol sponsorg anizatns ci if gays n jo, the anizatn received a flood of rpons om both sis. The Boy Suts have asked for the surveys to be returned by April BSA also asked if the currently policy was a “re value” of Sutg and if rponnts would leave the BSA if a cisn was ma that disagreed wh their qutns on the survey clu:A gay male troop lear, along wh another adult lear, is takg a group of boys on a mpg trip followg the youth protectn guil of two-ep learship.

Related stori: Boy Suts: We need more time for cisn on gay SutsAfter years of heartache, gay Suts and supporters react warily over proposal to lift ban'Gravely distrsed': Relign looms large over Boy Suts cisn on gays 'BATTLESTATIONS! This policy change was cricized by people and groups on both sis of the issue; LGBTQ anizatns felt didn’t go far enough and relig groups were agast allowg openly gay youth to be members. This lson provis an opportuny for stunts to learn more about the evolutn of the Boy Suts’ posn on gay members and lears, analyze Robert Gat’ recent speech on the issue and explore stunts’ own pots of view by wrg persuasive says.

BOY SUTS' ACCEPTANCE OF GAY BOYS DRAWS HEATED REACTNS

Lol lears of the Boy Suts of Ameri voted Thursday to ease a divisive ban and allow openly gay boys to be accepted to the natn's leadg youth anizatn -- one of the most dramatic mov the anizatn has ma a Otero/APDAVID CRARY and NOMAAN MERCHANT, Associated Prs. GRAPEVINE, Texas (AP) — After lengthy and wrenchg bate, lol lears of the Boy Suts of Ameri have voted to open their ranks to openly gay boys for the first time, but heated reactns om the left and right ma clear that the BSA's ntroversi are far om Suts' longstandg ban on gay adults remas force, and many liberal Sut lears -- as well as gay-rights groups -- plan to ntue prsg for an end to that excln even though the BSA's top officials aren't ready for that step.

"However, the oute will not end the membership policy bate, as was evint the reactns of lears of some of the nservative relig nomatns that sponsor Sut Suts om right, Joey Kalich, 10, Steven Grime, 7, and Jonathon Grime, 9, raise their hands at the close of a news nference held by people agast the change the Boy Suts of Ameri gay policy Wednday, May 22, 2013, Grapeve, Otero/ASSOCIATED PRESS"We are eply sadned, " said Frank Page, print of the Southern Baptist Conventn's executive mtee.

" It also warned that the change would make the BSA vulnerable to lawsus seekg to end the ban on gay Stembeger, a nservative activist and former Sut om Florida, found a group lled to oppose the policy change.

CHURCH MOVE TO CUT TI TO SUTS AFTER GAY POLICY CHANGE

"While I will always cherish my time as a Sut and the life lsons I learned, I am greatly disappoted wh this cisn, " he rult was weled by many liberal members of the Sutg muny and by gay-rights activists, though most of the praise was upled wh lls for endg the ban on gay sut maser Mark Noel, of Hanover, NH, holds up a new mer badge of cln durg a prs nference at the Equal Sutg Summ beg held near where the Boy Suts of Ameri are holdg their annual meetg Grapeve, Otero/AP"I'm so proud of how far we've e, but until there's a place for everyone Sutg, my work will ntue, " said Jennifer Tyrrell, whose oter as a Cub Sut n lear Oh bee she is lbian lnched a natnal prott movement.

WILL THE BOY SUTS REVERSE ITS ANTI-GAY POLICY?

"That one uple hours (between 17 and 18) will make me not a good person, " he Dale, 42, who was the first person to challenge the Boy Suts gay ban urt, agreed, llg the cisn "a b of a step backward" for gay youth. It says that beg gay is a youthful discretn, and that there's no future for you, " Dale, of New Jersey, told The sued the Boy Suts 1990 after he was removed as an assistant sutmaster bee of his sexual orientatn. In general, the Suts' policy has been to avoid any qutng of would-be Suts as to their sexual orientatn, but to dismiss boys who did speak openly about beg example, Sut officials refed to grant the Eagle Sut rank to Ryan Andren, an 18-year-old Californian, after he me out as gay last vote followed what the BSA scribed as "the most prehensive listeng exercise Sutg's history" to gge opns, cludg a survey sent out startg Febary to members of the Sutg the more than 200, 000 lears, parents and youth members who rpond, 61 percent supported the current policy of excludg gays, while 34 percent opposed .

BOY SUTS: WE'RE KEEPG POLICY BANNG GAYS

Most parents of young Suts, as well as youth members themselv, opposed the proposal approved Thursday was seen as a promise, and the Suts strsed that they would not ndone sexual nduct by any Sut -- gay or straight. "The Boy Suts of Ameri will not sacrifice s missn, or the youth served by the movement, by allowg the anizatn to be nsumed by a sgle, divisive and unrolved societal issue, " the BSA said a those votg for the proposal to accept openly gay youth was Thomas Roberts, of Dawsonville, Ga., who serv on the board of a Sut uncil northeast Geia. S., 70 percent are chartered by relig clu liberal church opposed to any ban on gays, but some of the largt sponsors are relatively nservative nomatns that have prevly supported the broad ban -- notably the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of J Christ of Latter-day Sats and Southern Baptist the Southern Baptists were clearly upset by the vote to accept openly gay youth, the Utah-based Mormon church -- which has more Sutg troops than any other relig nomatn -- reacted posively.

But other church are rallyg to dissolve their Boy Sut groups favor of on that take a more relig s annual meetg this month, the Southern Baptist Conventn is expected to urge s nearly 46, 000 church the Uned Stat to jo or crease their participatn the Bible-based Royal Ambassadors program rather than ntue sponsorg Boy Sut troops, said Roger Oldham, the Baptists’ after the Boy Suts’ vote on gay members, the Rev.

A meetg of church lears om a half-dozen nomatns and parents who oppose the cln of gay suts is schled this month Louisville, Ky., to discs buildg what the anizer, John Stemberger, lls a new “character-velopment anizatn for boys.

BOY SUTS ARE POISED TO END BAN ON GAY LEARS

”Permtg gay suts will lead to a “mass exod om the Boy Suts program, ” acrdg to a statement posted on the Web se of the Royal Rangers, a Pentestal program wh about 81, 000 members the Uned Stat.

TIMELE: THE BOY SUTS’ LONG HISTORY OF ANTI-GAY DISCRIMATN

They have taken a wilrns survival class Central Park and on Saturday will volunteer at a n hosted by Brooklyn Pri, which supports gay Ban-Powell Associatn remas ty pared wh the Boy Suts, but says about 90 percent of s 30 chapters were tablished the past 11 months.

Bee the Boy Suts still bans gay lears, the new policy on gay members will not stem the ti of newers to the Navigators, said Rob Bossert, the group’s founr, who expects to reach 65 chapters when school starts September. “We are not willg to promise God’s word, ” said Easley, pastor of the 2, 300-member Roswell Street Baptist Church Marietta, Ga., which has sponsored Boy Sut Troop 204 sce, chairman of the Southern Baptist Conventn’s executive mtee, said his church will shut down s troop at end of the year bee of a recently adopted policy to allow openly gay suts.

“This policy reaffirms that dog one’s ‘duty to God’ is absolutely explic and one of the fundamental prcipl of Sutg and stat that sexual nduct by any Sut, heterosexual or homosexual, is ntrary to the virtu of Sutg, ” he said an Suts’ two largt relig sponsors, the Church of J Christ of Latter-day Sats and the Uned Methodist Church, both said they tend to rema volved sponsorg Sut Bart, executive director of the Abilene, Texas-based Members of the Church of Christ for Sutg, says he wish the Boy Suts hadn’t changed their policy, but said church should “not take their ball and go home. The anizatn’s policy, reerated, is: “While the BSA do not proactively quire about the sexual orientatn of employe, volunteers, or members, we do not grant membership to dividuals who are open or avowed homosexuals or who engage behavr that would bee a distractn to the missn of the BSA.

BOY SUTS VS. GAYS

The Boy Suts of Ameri will keep their ntroversial policy banng gay suts and lears after a nfintial two-year review, the anizatn said announcement amid a stepped-up mpaign om activist groups urgg an end to the membership standards.