Boy Scouts vote to allow gay members, scout leaders still denied
by Kim Hilsenbeck
Openly gay boys up to age 18 are now allowed to be members of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), reversing a long-held policy for the 103-year-old organization, and local Hays County scout leaders and parents are weighing in on the subject. Gay adults, age 18 and older, are still banned from being leaders; that policy was not up for review.
A statement from BSA said, “The resolution also reinforces that Scouting is a youth program, and any sexual conduct, whether heterosexual or homosexual, by youth of Scouting age is contrary to the virtues of Scouting.”
The policy maintains scouting youth adhere to a duty to God and behavior consistent with the highest level of good conduct.
Scouting represents nearly 2.7 million youth and one million adult members across the nation. The Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, a sexual orientation law and public policy think tank, estimated in 2011 that nine million (about 3.8%) of Americans identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.
The May 23 decision – with a 60/40 vote in favor of allowing gay scouts – by the BSA’s 1,400 National Council members at a meeting in Texas brought both praise and criticism.
Buda Scoutmaster Codie Smith said having gay scouts will not affect his view of scouting or have any detrimental effects on other scouts.
“Scouting is about learning practical skills, citizenship, respect for the outdoors, replacing self with service and gaining a sense of achievement,” Smith said. “Sexual orientation has no relevance to any of that. So it would be business as usual in Troop 218 if a gay scout joined.”
Smith said his troop, sponsored by St. Elizabeth’s Episcopal Church in Buda, will not lose its charter with the church.
But for the nearly 70 percent of scout troops sponsored by faith-based organizations, openly gay members could present some challenges.
According to The Washington Times, many faith-based organizations that sponsor scout troops and activities are still struggling over whether to remain in scouting, while parents are debating whether to pull their sons out of the organization.
The Washington Times also reports that churches of various faith denominations in several southern states, as well as Idaho, have ended scouting programs because the policy goes against church teachings. The Mormon Church, the nation’s largest sponsor of scouting troops serving some 430,000 boys, said it will continue its sponsorship.
Neither the United Methodist church nor the Catholic Church, the next two largest sponsors, formally oppose the policy shift.
Baptist leaders reportedly will encourage the denomination’s nearly 46,000 U.S. churches to stop sponsoring scout troops at the annual Southern Baptist Convention this week, while top officials at the Assemblies of God denomination are predicting a mass exodus from scouting. That denomination formed the Royal Rangers, a group for boys that operates with values consistent to that of the BSA prior to the recent policy change.
Charles Mead, a spokesperson for the BSA Capital Area Council, said while his organization is tracking churches that indicated they would withdraw sponsorship of boy scout charters, things are not as bleak as the national news reported.
“The good news for us is, we don’t have a very long list of those who said they would leave scouting because of the vote,” he said in a recent phone interview with the Hays Free Press. “The majority or more of our (scouting) units are finding that to be the case. People don’t have such an opposition to the membership change that they have lost faith in the program.”
The Capital Area Council of BSA is active in a 15-county region of Central Texas, which is divided into 13 districts. Hays County is in what’s called the Sacred Springs district.
Mead said that while his office received about 100 responses to an email sent out to members about the decision, maybe 80 disagreed with the vote but only a few dozen said they will drop their son from BSA.
“Once people get past the emotional reaction, fewer of them are so opposed to the decision that they say they can’t be a part of scouting,” Mead said.
He also said he didn’t think the National Council vote would have been in favor of allowing gay members by a 20 point difference if a lot of churches hadn’t been in favor of the move.
Carol Swanson, who said she is an active local adult member of both the boy and girl scout organizations for more than a dozen years, said for her, it’s all about the youth.
Her comment on the Hays Free Press Facebook page said, “The bottom line for me, is that the program (Boy Scouts) is about the youth. It’s about developing leadership skills and a sense of adventure and learning new skills and confidences and understanding, and all sorts of character building good things. Why shouldn’t it be open to ALL youth? Disabled, Jewish, Black, Hispanic, Irish...all these groups were discriminated against in the past. Scouting accepted them, and the program has continued to serve the youth. Why should Gay youth be excluded.”
Swanson also said BSA didn’t go far enough with its policy decision.
“When the youth turns 18 (in scouting) or 21 (in Venturing), they have to leave. That makes the program lose valuable young adults. It’s just crazy,” she said.
Robert Vinson Cravey, Jr. commented on the Hays Free Press Facebook page about the decision.
“So ends a tradition in scouting. The gays can have it. When we de-moralize (sic) an institution of honor and moral values to fall for a few nasty whiners we have succomb (sic) to those of optional sexual orientation. The good people of high moral character just need to walk away with dignity. I’ll never support this organization again,” he wrote.
Another poster, Joseph Ford, said, “Being gay is a sexual preference. Sex has no place in the boy scouts.”
For commenter Troy Bryan Walker, the issue appears to be based in religion.
“SO much for values and morals…” he wrote. “Yes times have changed, but it stays the same with the BIG GUY upstairs...”
Kevin Cervenka, an 11-year old scout in Smith’s troop, didn’t let the decision by the national council dissuade him from selling camp cards – a $5 card that offers discounts on local goods and services.
He and his father, Tommy Cervenka, set up shop on a recent Friday evening outside a dance studio on Main Street in Buda where Kevin’s sister takes lessons.
Neither dad nor son seemed worried about raising enough money to attend summer camp. Kevin’s goal was to sell 1,000 cards each worth $5; he sold 1,001. His dad said he wouldn’t stop until he sold 20 a day. They spent weeks all over northern Hays County to reach that goal, which will help Kevin attend summer camp at no charge. His sales also earned him a free winter camp.
Cervenka said four people overall declined to purchase a camp card from Kevin - several of those said they heard about the BSA decision.
“They said they weren’t going to support scouts because of it,” he said.
Given the number of camp cards his son sold, Cervenka felt most people were not discouraged from helping a scout.
Shay Howard of Buda, and a mom of one of the dancers, bought one of Kevin’s cards. She did not seem concerned about the BSA decision.
“I’m not worried about it,” she said.
Buda United Methodist Church member Beverly Nelms wrote in to say she was sad the BSA organization wasn’t more inclusive of gay members, but still had praise for the recent membership change.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been more proud of the scouts,” Nelms said.
The adopted resolution states:
Membership in any program of the Boy Scouts of America requires the youth member to (a) subscribe to and abide by the values expressed in the Scout Oath and Scout Law, (b) subscribe to and abide by the precepts of the Declaration of Religious Principle (duty to God), and (c) demonstrate behavior that exemplifies the highest level of good conduct and respect for others and is consistent at all times with the values expressed in the Scout Oath and Scout Law. No youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone.
Boy Scout Oath:
On my honor, I will do my best
To do my duty to God and my country
and to obey the Scout Law
To help other people at all times;
To keep myself physically strong,
mentally awake, and morally straight.
Scout Law:
“A Scout is trustworthy, obedient, loyal, cheerful, helpful, thrifty, friendly, brave, courteous, clean, kind, reverent.”
