SCOUT'S DISHONOR

Boy Scouts Of America Reaffirms Ban On Gay Members And Leaders

The Boy Scouts of America today announced it was reaffirming its policy of banning openly gay scouts and leaders, calling it”absolutely the best policy for the Boy Scouts.”

After a petition with more than 250,000 signatures was delivered by Eagle Scout Zach Wahls in May, the BSA had promised to consider lifting the ban.  But the Associated Press an 11-member committee “was unanimous in its conclusion.”

In a statement, Scout leaders explained:

“Scouting believes that good people can personally disagree on this topic and still work together to achieve the life-changing benefits to youth through Scouting. While not all board members may personally agree with this policy, and may choose a different direction for their own organizations, BSA leadership agrees this is the best policy for the organization.”

Advocates of changing the policy were angered by the secretive nature of the committee. “The very first value of the Scout Law is that a Scout is trustworthy,” Wahls told BuzzFeed’s Chris Geidner. “There is absolutely nothing trustworthy about unelected and unnamed committee members who are unwilling to take responsibility for their actions.”

Despite the disappointing news, Wahls isn’t deterred: “We’ve heard this line before, and we’ll hear it again before this is all said and done,” he said. “I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: this will be the official BSA policy up until the day it finally ends.”

And that’s a day that can’t come soon enough.

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