Boy Scouts Lose Their Way  NYFRF Reacts to the Boy Scouts of America Policy Change

View This Article on NYFRF's Web Site Here.  Rochester, NY - Earlier today, the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) voted to amend its membership policies to allow open and avowed homosexual youth to participate in Scouting. Rev. Jason J. McGuire, President of New Yorker's Family Research Foundation, made the following comments: "Today's vote marks the end of Scouting as we know it. Years of litigation and other forms of pressure from pro-homosexual individuals and groups have had their intended effect; they have led the BSA to throw up its hands and yield. By giving in to the pressure to compromise its position on homosexuality, the BSA has broken the Scout Law, which requires bravery. Further, the BSA's action today has rendered meaningless the provision of the Boy Scout Oath that requires Scouts to be 'morally straight.'" Rev. McGuire continued, "This policy change is wrong on many levels. First, it is a 'solution' without a problem. The existing policy on homosexuality reads as follows: While the BSA does not proactively inquire about the sexual orientation of employees, volunteers, or members, we do not grant membership to individuals who are open or avowed homosexuals or who engage in behavior that would become a distraction to the mission of the BSA. This policy is appropriate for an organization that helps boys develop into strong, responsible, morally upright men who contribute to American society. It does not exclude boys who struggle with unwanted same-sex attractions. Rather, it presents boys with a clear and fair choice between participating in Scouting and affirming a homosexual identity, and leaves them free to decide between the two. The policy also gives parents a clear assurance that traditional sexual morality will be upheld within Scouting, and that their local Boy Scout troop will not be a sexualized environment or a forum for the promotion of homosexuality." "Second, the policy change is a clear effort to stake out a middle ground on an issue where there is no middle ground. Either homosexuality is 'morally straight" or it is not. There is no in-between. While the leadership of the BSA may hope that today's accommodation will assuage the demands of homosexual activists, its hope is vain; pressure from those activists will continue, and they will not be satisfied until the BSA and every other institution in American society jumps onto the pro-gay bandwagon. Following today's vote, there really is no basis for the BSA not to completely fold on the issue of homosexuality and allow open, active homosexuals to participate in Scouting at all levels." "Third, the new policy leaves many questions unanswered. While the BSA asserts that the new policy will not allow homosexually active boys to participate in Scouting, NYFRF does not believe that this assertion is correct. While the resolution that was passed made it clear that the BSA frowns on sexual behavior of any sort by boys, the policy itself contains no prohibition on homosexual behavior. This omission could result in the new policy being construed to allow homosexually active boys to participate in Scouting." "Fourth, there is an internal inconsistency in the new policy-it will allow boys who identify as homosexual to participate in Scouting, but will not allow men who identify as homosexual to participate in the BSA as leaders. This inconsistency seems likely to result in further litigation, and hands homosexual activists a strong argument that the BSA no longer frowns upon homosexuality and, thus, should be compelled to allow openly gay scoutmasters." "Finally, the new policy will drive away churches, families, and Scouts who believe in the timeless principles that the BSA used to embrace. With great sadness, NYFRF calls upon those churches, families, and Scouts to explore alternatives to the BSA that do not offend their moral principles regarding homosexuality. Clearly, the Scouts have lost their way." ###  NewYorkFamilies.org New Yorker's Family Research Foundation (NYFRF) is a non-profit organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. NYFRF believes that strong families mean a strong state. NYFRF educates evangelical Christians and other socially conservative New Yorkers on issues pertaining to the pro-family perspective in the Empire State.