January 30, 2013 | Sex & Society

Boy Scouts may loosen ban on gays

The Boy Scouts of America may be close to relaxing its ban on gays and lesbians as members, volunteers and staff.

In 1991, the group officially declared that homosexuality was “inconsistent with the Scout Oath that a Scout be morally straight and in the Scout Law that a Scout be clean in word and deed.”

Members and groups have argued against the ban, and the organization spent the past two years reviewing its position. The final decision, to be voted on by the Scouts membership early next month, is that the ban will stay. Well, sort of ...

"The vast majority of the parents of youth we serve value their right to address issues of same-sex orientation within their family, with spiritual advisers, and at the appropriate time and in the right setting," explained Bob Mazzuca, chief scout executive. "While a majority of our membership agrees with our policy, we fully understand that no single policy will accommodate the many diverse views among our membership or society.”

That being said, the Scouts has suggested relaxing the rules to enable individual units to determine for themselves whether or not to address the ban. This means some groups can continue to bar the participation of homosexuals, while others can become gay-friendly.

Some church groups have already expressed dismay at the decision, and have threatened to withhold financial support for the group.

U.S. Boy Scouts retreat from no-gays policy; unit sponsors could set rules [The Province]