Give the Boy Scouts Half a Merit Badge
One of the oldest, largest and most Christian youth organizations in the United States will bow to the public's demand for an end to its long-standing ban on openly gay youth participants if its voting members permit it next month.
One of the oldest, largest and most Christian youth organizations in the United States will bow to the public’s demand for an end to its long-standing ban on openly gay youth participants if its voting members permit it next month.
If the 1,400-person National Council votes in favor, “no youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone,” the organization’s spokesman told Reuters. The ban on openly gay adult members would remain.
— Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly.
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The compromise comes as gay-rights groups have demanded a complete lifting of the ban amid political support from both president Barack Obama and former Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney. Corporate sponsors, including drugs giant Merck, have suspended funding for the BSA, citing its discrimination against gay people.
At the same time some religious and conservative groups have pressed for the ban to remain. The organisation estimates that easing the ban on gay adults could cost the organization 100,000 to 350,000 members. The BSA was founded in 1910 and has 2.7m youth members and over 1m adult volunteers. The Supreme Court upheld its right to ban gay members in 2000.
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Scores of lawyers are seeking settlements on behalf of several thousand men who say they were molested as scouts.
The new policy still allows church-organized local units to consider sexual orientation when deciding who can volunteer and lead Scout groups.
A lot of regulations went into effect Jan. 1, marking a new year that will see a lot of interesting things occur in various countries all over the globe.
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