The Family Research Council and 41 other “family” organizations took out an ad in today’s USA Today urging the Boy Scouts of America to stay true to their “timeless values” of hate and bigotry and “not surrender to financial or political pressures by corporate elites on the issue of homosexuality.”
The BSA is considering putting an end their controversial ban on gay scouts and leaders.
According to the FRC’s press release:
The ad states that a policy change would be “a grave mistake” and that, “Every American who believes in freedom of thought and religious liberty should be alarmed by the attacks upon the Boy Scouts,” whose oath includes that members should be “morally straight.” The ad emphasizes that, “To compromise moral principles under political and financial pressure would teach the boys cowardice, not courage.”
The ad highlights BSA’s policy of recognizing the right of parents to teach their children about sexual topics. The ad concludes by challenging readers to ask themselves, “How will parents be able to entrust their children to the Boy Scouts if they trade the well-being of the boys for corporate dollars?”
Other organizations that co-signed the ad include the American Family Association, American Values, Catholic Family & Human Rights Institute, International Communion of Evangelical Churches, Liberty Counsel and Patriot Voices.
Note how their names all purport to advocate religion, patriotism and morals. Surely, the irony is lost on them.
Meanwhile, according to GLAAD, the BSA’s headquarters in Dallas will be visited by some of those “corporate elite” — Scout mom Jennifer Tyrrell, gay Eagle Scout Will Oliver, gay former Scoutmaster Greg Bourke, and Eric Andresen, father of the gay scout famously denied his Eagle badge — with a petition of over 1.4 million signatures calling for an end to the ban.
Sounds like the BSA’s going to busy with a lot of reading and phone calls today.
Dakotahgeo
Interesting! I called the BS number and was directed to their http://www.scouting.org to leave my vote and comment(s). Having done so, there is nowhere on that website to do either voting or commenting. Nice play, SFBs BSA! So much for your “A Boy Scout is honest” malarkey! A pox on your entire organization!
Dana
I have been watching my twitternet and the consensus is that they should drop their anti-gay policy. And there are a lot who thinks they should drop their anti-atheist policy as well. And I agree with both. I am for equality.