While we feel for Cate and Elizabeth Wirth, it’s sort of like, “C’mon ladies, get with the times.” The lesbian Vermont couple wanted to help out their 10-year-old son’s Boy Scout troop after the district director Erik Tanney asked for parent volunteers, but were rejected because Tanney supposedly said “we wouldn’t want you pushing your lifestyle on the boys.” (Which they so would!) Except, anti-gay attitudes is always what the Boy Scouts — which turns 100 next year — have been about, and the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision in 2000 they were allowed to discriminate about The Gays. So either quit trying to volunteer and remain content with being allowed to even participate in the Boy Scouts with other parents in scouting activities, or, we don’t know, PULL YOUR KID OUT OF A HOMOPHOBIC ORGANIZATION.
Which they won’t be doing: “I still think Scouts is a good thing for him because he doesn’t have a dad and he’s really drawn to a lot of stereotypical male stuff that Scouting does, outdoorsy stuff,” says Cate Wirth. “I don’t want my personal issues to impact his life in that way. I was concerned if he knew about it he might be uncomfortable going. Politically, if he weren’t a 10-year -old boy I’d feel differently about it. I wouldn’t support the organization. But his needs come first.” Indeed.
(NB: Elsewhere, we really enjoyed Charles Fleming’s take down of the Boy Scouts today.)
RomanHans
I totally feel for these ladies. I mean, it’s just impossible to find lesbians who like the outdoors.
FakeName
And there are no other youth organizations in the state of Vermont?
romeo
@ FakeName: Really! What are these women thinking? Nothing like sending their child into an organization that’s going to turn him against his parents, which the Boy Scouts will definitely do these days. These women are useless.
Former Eagle Scout
The BSA has become an LDS(Mormon)-owned corporation. They control and operate millions of acres of public lands across the country that should be administrated by the national parks service(Wisconsin is a particularly egregious example).
They discriminate against every minority in the country who won’t conform to their religious doctrine, and yet retain a tax exempt status, and, funding from our Local, State and Federal Governments.
Your Tax Dollars At Work?
Start charging them rent in a public school & see how long they are able to keep up the ruse.
Mick
Well, even though we are of Jewish descent, our son is really drawn to the Nazis, the parades…etc, and he is just nuts about the Fuhrer. Politically, if he wasn’t a 10 yr old, we wouldn’t support an organization like the Hitler Youth, but his needs come first.
alan brickman
That pic of boyscouts hanging out with nazi youth in the 30’s is very telling….
chris
Yes alan, I’m sure you do enjoy looking at pics of little boys.
Chuck Martens
For the love of god or whatever – will you guys PLEASE hire an editor? You’re embarrassing the hell out of me and all the other intelligent gays here! Look at your heading: them them? Almost every article you post has errors!
Jason
Yes the BSA is full of homophobia and is controlled in many areas by the Mormons. Idaho recently had a huge case of the good mormon leader sexually abusing children…the BSA and the Mormons covered it up but of course took him out of the situation. He moved on to other abuses and finally was exposed by two of his victims. Then when a reporter (gay) brought it to the forefront and the paper did a series on it the reported was outed by one of the mormon millionaires who bought a full page ad in the same newspaper claiming the reporter was just out to ruin this poor man because the reporter was gay……hmmmmm was that relevant NOT but of course this same millionaire’s wife donated $100,000 to the prop 8 mess and also donated their call centers for the good BYU students to use for calls to the poor people in California who of course couldn’t think for themselves without the mormons help. BUT I digress (sorry), my point is that the BSA has always been and will remain homophobic….them the Catholics, mormons and will continue to hide abuse with the money they are receiving!!
Craizey
Chuck that’s what’s bugging me too lol
Lukas P.
Enough about trying to change the BSA–it ain’t gonna happen. Find the kid a soccer team or a class at the forest preserve.
p.s. My Scoutmaster was — and still is — a gay man. And no, he never did anything with/to any of his scouts.
“Long live live” Chuck M! (#8). Spotting the obligatory typo-du-jour can also be the source of a drinking game. Problem is, after just a few articles worth of errors, you can no longer locate or operate any navigation keys on the web browser. Not so fun, at that point.
As much as I love Queerty, I wish they had a copy editor on hand or fix big mistakes when they’re pointed out.
I know I make spelling/grammatical errors while commenting on blogs, but that’s not the same as publishing news stories. Is it?
Queerty, even with its blemishes is still a great blog. The commentaries are spot on and often laugh-till-your-dentures-fall-out-funny.