Boy Scouts of America membership controversies

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Boy Scouts of America logo

The Boy Scouts of America, the largest youth organization in the United States, has policies which prohibit certain people from membership and participation; some of these membership policies are controversial. There have been several cases in which an adult Scout leader or a Scout has been removed from the BSA or a Scouting unit for being an atheist, agnostic, or homosexual as a result of these policies.

The Boy Scouts of America and its supporters contend that these membership policies are essential in its mission to "instill in young people lifetime values and develop in them ethical character" and are consistent with the core values expressed in the Scout Oath and Law. Critics believe that some or all of these policies are wrong and amount to discrimination.

The organization's right to set such policies has been upheld repeatedly by both state and federal courts. Moreover, in 2000, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed that the Boy Scouts of America is a private organization which can set its own membership standards. In recent years, the policy disputes have led to litigation over the terms under which the BSA can access governmental resources including public lands. Another membership controversy concerns the BSA's exclusion of girls from some of its Scouting programs.

Boy Scouts of America's values affect membership criteria

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Boy Scouts of America Strategic Plan logo

Religion has been an integral part of the international Scouting movement since its inception. As early as 1908, Scouting founder Baden-Powell wrote in the first Scout handbook that “No man is much good unless he believes in God and obeys His laws. So every Scout should have a religion." The World Organization of the Scout Movement with few exceptions, requires all member National Scout Organizations to reference "duty to God" in their respective Scout promise (words such as "my religion" or "Dharma" are sometimes used instead of the word "God"). In Cub Scouting, Cub Scouts working on the Bear rank must complete a requirement about their faith although they, like Boy Scouts, are not required to adhere to an organized religion.

Religious groups have developed and administer their own religious emblems programs to encourage their members to grow stronger in their faith. The religious emblems can be worn on the Scout uniform if the program has been approved by the BSA and the Scout has completed the emblem requirements.

Two central tenets of the Boy Scouts of America are the Scout Oath and Scout Law. All members are required, as a condition of membership, to promise to uphold and obey both of these pledges. In the Scout Oath, the Scout promises, in part, to be "morally straight" and to "to do my duty to God". The Scout Law holds that a Scout is "Clean" and "Reverent". The text of the BSA's Scout Oath and Law has remained unchanged since they were approved in 1911.

As early as 1978, the Boy Scouts of America circulated a memorandum with national executive staff explicitly stating that they held the Scout Oath and Law to be incompatible with homosexuality. Similarly, since at least 1985, the BSA has explicitly interpreted the Scout Oath and Law as being incompatible with agnosticism and atheism. In both instances, the organization asserted that it was not a "new policy" to expel atheists and gays -- rather, the BSA argued it was just enforcing long-held policies which had never been published or publicly challenged.

Position on atheists and agnostics

The Boy Scouts of America's position is that agnostics and atheists cannot participate as Scouts (youth members) or Scouters (BSA registered adult leader volunteers and salaried employees):

"The Boy Scouts of America maintains that no member can grow into the best kind of citizen without recognizing an obligation to God. In the first part of the Scout Oath or Promise the member declares, ‘On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law.’ The recognition of God as the ruling and leading power in the universe and the grateful acknowledgment of His favors and blessings are necessary to the best type of citizenship and are wholesome precepts in the education of the growing members."

The BSA believes that an atheist or agnostic is not an appropriate role model of the Scout Oath and Law for boys and thus will not accept such adults as leaders. The Boy Scouts of America prohibits youths and adults who do not agree to the Scout Oath, which includes the provision of doing one's "duty to God".

Position on homosexuals

Since 1981, openly-gay adults have been officially prohibited from joining the Boy Scouts of America. The BSA "believes that a known or avowed homosexual is not an appropriate role model of the Scout Oath and Law".

The language used to describe the BSA's policies on homosexuals has evolved over time. Prior to 2004, the policy explicitly stated:

"We do not allow for the registration of avowed homosexuals as members or as leaders of the BSA."

In 2004, the BSA composed a new statement that elaborates on the policy:

"Boy Scouts of America believes that homosexual conduct is inconsistent with the obligations in the Scout Oath and Scout Law to be morally straight and clean in thought, word, and deed. The conduct of youth members must be in compliance with the Scout Oath and Law, and membership in Boy Scouts of America is contingent upon the willingness to accept Scouting’s values and beliefs."

The BSA has stated in a press release that, "Boy Scouting makes no effort to discover the sexual orientation of any person." BSA application forms for youth membership and adult leadership positions do not inquire about the applicants' sexual orientation and do not mention the BSA's policies regarding homosexuals. BSA local councils and Scouting units are required to adhere to National Council policies as a condition of their charters; however, there is inconsistency in the way some have interpreted and implemented official policy on homosexuality.

Several local councils have stated that they have implemented the policy in a way that is similar to the U.S. Armed Forces' "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. In this view, homosexuals should be allowed to remain members as long as they do not disclose their sexual orientation, and the BSA should not question or investigate their sexual orientation.

There is, however, disagreement as to whether "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is consistent with National Council's official policy. There have been reports of practices which are quite different from "Don't Ask, Don't Tell". These reports include instances of Scouting leaders questioning a member about their sexual orientation, sometimes resulting in their expulsion. In 2005, a high-level employee of BSA was fired by National Council after the organization somehow obtained a copy of his bill from a gay resort at which he had vacationed.

Litigation over the policies

The Boy Scouts of America has been involved in a number of lawsuits challenging its membership, leadership, and employment standards. Some of the lawsuits dealt with the BSA's standards that require Scouts and Scouters to believe in God and not be homosexual, and the exclusion of girls from membership.

During the 1980s and 1990s, there were several high-profile lawsuits in which individuals asked the courts to require the BSA to include gays or atheists. In 1981, Tim Curran, an openly-gay adult volunteer, sued asking that he be included in the Scouting program. In 1991, twin brothers William and Michael Randall, who had been expelled for refusing to swear a "duty to God", sued to be allowed to participate in the program. In addition, there were at least five or six other prominent lawsuits involving basically the same issue. Ultimately, the Boy Scouts of America won every case.

In the wake of these rulings, the right of the BSA to set their own membership standards has been firmly established. The Courts have repeatedly held that the Boys Scouts of America, and all private organizations, have a right to set membership standards under the First Amendment protected concept of freedom of association. In particular, in Boy Scouts of America v. Dale (2000), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the BSA's right to freedom of association gave them the authority to expel a gay assistant Scoutmaster.

There has been some opposition to single-sex membership programs and organizations in the United States including the programs of the BSA. The Boy Scouts of America admits only boys to its Cub Scout and Boy Scout programs although girls age 14 and older may join Venturing. According to the BSA, "The Cub Scout and Boy Scout programs were designed to meet the emotional, psychological, physical, and other needs of boys between the ages of 8 and 14.". Several lawsuits involving girls seeking admission to the BSA resulted in court rulings that the BSA is not required to admit girls. (See Coeducational Scouting.)

The focus of the lawsuits in recent years has shifted to challenging the BSA's relationship with governments in light of their membership policies. A number of lawsuits have been filed by the American Civil Liberties Union over issues such as BSA recruiting in public schools and government involvement with the BSA. Other lawsuits deal with the conditions under which the BSA is allowed to access governmental resources.

Governmental sponsorship of Scouting units

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The ACLU has taken legal action to stop governmental organizations from serving as the chartered organizations (sponsors) of Scouting units. The U.S. Department of Defense announced in 2004 that it would end direct sponsorship of Scouting units in response to a religious discrimination lawsuit brought by the ACLU. The BSA agreed in 2005 to transfer all charters it had issued to governmental entities to private entities in response to a request from the ACLU. Previously, about 400 Scouting units had been sponsored by U.S. military bases and over 10,000 by other governmental entities, primarily public schools.

Access to governmental resources

The conditions under which the Boy Scouts of America can access public and nonpublic governmental resources have become controversial. Historically, the BSA (and the Girl Scouts of the USA) have often been granted preferential access to governmental resources such as lands and facilities.

When a private organization such as the BSA receives access on terms more favorable than other private organizations, it is known as "special" or "preferential" access whereas "equal" access is access on the same terms. For example, state and local governments may lease property to nonprofit groups (such as the BSA) on terms that are preferential to or equal to the terms they offer to commercial groups, in other words they may give nonprofit groups either special or equal access. Special access includes access at a reduced fee (including no fee) or access to places off-limits to other groups.

The U.S. Army gives the BSA special access to a base, Fort A.P. Hill, for its national Scout jamboree and the U.S. Department of Defense spends funds to support it. There is a legal controversy surrounding this funding; see Funding controversy for more information.

Many local governments have enacted anti-discrimination ordinances; since the BSA's membership policies are sometimes contrary to these laws, some government organizations have moved to change the terms under which the BSA is allowed to access its resources. Private individuals have filed lawsuits to prevent governmental entities from granting what they see as preferential access. The BSA on the other hand has sued governmental entities for denying what it sees as equal access. It is not always clear what constitutes "special access" versus "equal access" and this can be the source of a dispute.

In response to these changes and litigation, the federal government passed laws regarding the BSA's equal access to governmental resources. The Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act, enacted in 2002, requires public elementary and secondary schools that receive U.S. Department of Education funding to provide BSA groups equal access to school facilities. The Support our Scouts Act of 2005 requires state and local governments that receive HUD funding to provide BSA groups equal access to governmental forums (lands, facilities, etc.). State and local governments still have flexibility regarding the provision of special access to the BSA.

Litigation is pending on the terms under which the City of San Diego is providing access to the BSA and whether the federal government's funding of the national Scout jamboree is constitutional (See Barnes-Wallace v. Boy Scouts of America and Winkler v. Rumsfeld, respectively). In March 2006, the California Supreme Court ruled in Evans v. Berkeley that the City of Berkeley did not have to continue to subsidize a local BSA unit, the Sea Scouts. In September 2006, the Oregon Supreme Court ruled that Boy Scouts cannot be kept from recruiting in public schools.

Support for the Boy Scouts of America

There is widespread support for the BSA in the United States:

Support from within Scouting

A number of people within the Boy Scouts of America have voiced strong and unequivocal support for the policies. In 2002, the National Executive Board of Boy Scouts of America reiterated its support for the policies and affirmed that "the Boy Scouts of America shall continue to follow its traditional values and standards of leadership". Also in 2002, a group of current and former members of the BSA created a group called Save Our Scouts in order "to support and defend the principles of the Scout Oath and Law".

Columnist Hans Zeiger, an Eagle Scout, has founded the Scout Honor Coalition, a grassroots organization dedicated to supporting the policies. According to Zeiger, "Scouts' honor is under attack in American culture". Zeiger applauds what he sees as the BSA's courage in resisting political pressure to admit gays, saying, "Regardless of what leads to homosexuality, it is a thing that has an agenda in our society and is very harmful to the traditional family and is causing a tremendous amount of harm to young men. The Boy Scouts are one of the few organizations that have the moral sense to stand against the homosexual agenda".

The American Heritage Girls is a Scouting organization that provides an alternative to the Girl Scouts of the USA. American Heritage Girls' policies on gays and atheists are similar to those held by the BSA. It was formed by parents who were unhappy that GSUSA accepted lesbians as troop leaders, allowed girls to substitute another word more applicable to their belief for "God" in the promise, and allegedly banned prayer at meetings.

Support from government

President Bush addresses the 2005 National Scout Jamboree at Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia.

The U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate have overwhelmingly passed resolutions in support of the Boy Scouts of America. In November 2004, the House passed a resolution, by a vote of 391 to 3, recognizing "the Boy Scouts of America for the public service the organization performs". Then, in February 2005, the House passed a resolution by a vote of 418 to 7, stating that "the Department of Defense should continue to exercise its long-standing statutory authority to support the activities of the BSA, in particular the periodic national and world Scout jamborees."

The U.S. Congress has twice passed bills directly affecting the governmental resources access controversy. In 2002, the U.S. Congress passed the Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act, which encouraged the BSA's access to educational facilities. In July 2005, the Senate voted 98 to 0 in favor of the Support Our Scouts Act, enacted in December 2005, which encourages both governmental support of the Boy Scouts in general and federal support of the national Scout jamboree.

Sen Bill Frist, one of the sponsors of the Support Our Scouts Acts spoke highly of the BSA, saying:

"This unique American institution is committed to preparing our youth for the future by instilling in them values such as honesty, integrity, and character."

Of the Act, Frist explained:

"This legislation will allow the Boy Scouts to fulfill its mission without the distraction of defending itself against senseless attacks."

In August 2005, President George W. Bush addressed the National Scout Jamboree, and although he did not directly discuss the controversies, he reiterated his support for the organization. At the Jamboree, Bush commended the Scouts for upholding "values that build strong families, strong communities, and strong character" and said that the Scouts' values "are the values of America."

On October 04, 2006, The House passed the Public Expression of Religion Act of 2006 (PERA, HR 2679) by a vote of 244 to 173. The legislation is designed to thwart litigation against Scouting and government entities over the Boy Scouts’ relationships with those entities; lawsuits have sought to use the establishment clause to sever government relationships with Scouting because Boy Scouts must promise to do their “duty to God.” The basis of the legislation is to prohibit attorneys from collecting fees from the losing party in establishment clause cases. Critics suggest that this will discourage civil rights attorneys, such as those employed by the ACLU, from taking on establishment clause cases. The fate of this Act in the Senate is uncertain.

Support from others

A wide range of individuals, commentators, and conservative groups have spoken out in support of the Boy Scouts of America. The BSA legal website provides a list of editorials written in their support. In addition, a conservative civil libertarian group, the American Civil Rights Union, has set up the Scouting Legal Defense Fund, and has routinely helped with lawsuits. In a legal brief filed in support of the BSA, the American Civil Rights Union argued that "To label [the BSA's membership policies] discriminatory and exclusionary, and a civil rights violation, is an assault on the very freedom of American citizens to advance, promote, and teach traditional moral values."

One online petition, which has received over 375,000 electronic signatures, shows support for the Scouts from those who are "deeply troubled by the recent attacks which have come against the Boy Scouts simply because the Scouts have taken a stand for faith and moral values." The petition further asserts that, "As a private organization, the Boy Scouts has every right to set standards for leadership and morality."

A number of religious organizations, particularly those in the United States, regard homosexuality as immoral (see Religion and sexual orientation). In general, these religious groups and their members have been strong supporters of BSA's policies. Religious institutions are the chartered organizations (sponsors) of over 60% of the appoximately 123,000 Scouting units in the United States.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a longtime supporter of the Boy Scouts of America, strongly opposes homosexuality. The Church has threatened to withdraw from the Scouting program if they were ever compelled to accept openly homosexual Scout leaders. Mormon Scouting youth make up about 13% of BSA's youth members and the Church is the largest single sponsor of Scouting units with over 30,000 units nationwide.

Opposition to Boy Scouts of America's policies

There has been an increase in oppositon to the BSA's membership policies in recent years. Perhaps the most vocal opponent of the policies has been the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which has filed and assisted others in filing several lawsuits against the Boy Scouts of America. A few members of the U.S. Congress have also spoken out against the BSA's policies.

Youth organizations with different membership criteria

Many Scouting organizations have membership policies that are more inclusionary than BSA's. Homosexuals are not restricted from membership or leadership positions in Scouts Canada or most European associations, for example The Scout Association of the United Kingdom, Ring deutscher Pfadfinderverbände of Germany, or the Swedish Guide and Scout Association; all are members of World Organization of the Scout Movement, the same international Scouting organization that the Boy Scouts of America belongs to. The Girl Scouts of the USA also does not exclude homosexuals and allows its members to substitute another word in place of "God" when reciting the Girl Scout Promise.

Other American youth organizations do not have policies that exclude homosexuals and atheists, such as Camp Fire USA, SpiralScouts International, Star Scouting America, 4-H, and the BSA's Learning for Life program.

Opposition from within Scouting

Opposition within local units

Some within the Scouting movement are opposed to the membership policies. According to a BSA internal poll, about 30% of Scout parents do not support excluding gays.

In 2001, seven Cub Scout packs announced they would admit gays in violation of the national policy-- a move which resulted in their charters being revoked and the packs being disbanded by the National Council. Several other local councils have requested, and been denied, permission to sign non-discriminatory statements.

Opposition from former BSA members and supporters

Scouting For All logo

A number of former Scouts and leaders have formed organizations that advocate the inclusion of gays and atheists. In 1991, William Boyce Mueller, the grandson of original Boy Scouts of America founder William Dickson Boyce, founded a group of gay former Scouts called "The Forgotten Scouts". Another prominent organization is Scouting for All, which was founded by veteran Scouter Dave Rice, Steven Cozza (a 12-year old Life Scout who would go on to earn the rank of Eagle Scout at the age of fourteen), and Steven's father, Scouter Scott Cozza. The Coalitions for Inclusive Scouting is another such organization.

Filmmaker Steven Spielberg, himself an Eagle Scout, had been a long-time supporter of Scouting, depicting a young Indiana Jones as a Boy Scout in the 1989 film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. In 2001, Spielberg resigned from the BSA's advisory board in protest, saying, "it has deeply saddened me to see the Boy Scouts of America actively and publicly participating in discrimination."

After the Dale decision (2000), some Eagle Scouts returned their Eagle Scout badges to the BSA in protest.

The Unitarian Universalist Association has vocally opposed the BSA's membership exclusions. This dispute ultimately led to a controversial dissolution of any ties between the two organizations (see below).

In 2001, the Union for Reform Judaism's Commission on Social Action, citing a commitment to ending discrimination in all forms, issued a memorandum recommending that their congregations stop hosting BSA troops and that parents withdraw their children from all of the Boy Scouts of America's programs. Additionally, the General Synod of the United Church of Christ issued a statement condemning the BSA's policy and stating that, "Discrimination against anyone based on sexual orientation is contrary to our understanding of the teachings of Christ."

Expulsions for public disagreement with the policies

The Boy Scouts of America forbids its adult members from using their leader status to express political views to the public or to youth members. Based on this policy, a few adult members who have spoken out in the press about controversial issues have had their memberships revoked.

One notable example is, Dave Rice, a Scoutmaster with over 59 years in Scouting, who was expelled from Boy Scouts of America in 1998 for allegedly "involving Scouting youth" in his effort to have a BSA policy changed. Rice insists he obeyed all rules and guidelines, and that he never misused his leadership status or promoted any agenda during troop meetings. He also argues that Boy Scouts of America violated a number of their own due process rules by summarily dismissing him without granting him any chance to present evidence to a regional review board (as is required by the organization's own "Procedures for Maintaining Standards of Membership").

Loss of funding and preferential land access

In the wake of the controversy, some private institutions have severed their ties to the Boy Scouts of America. About 50 United Way chapters, including those in Miami, Orlando, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Seattle, have withdrawn all funding. The BSA has also lost all funding from several large corporations that used to be regular donors, such as Chase Manhattan Bank, Levi Strauss, Wells Fargo, Fleet Bank, and CVS/pharmacy. In another case, Pew Charitable Trusts, which had consistently supported the BSA for over fifty years, decided to cancel a $100,000 donation and cease any future donations. A number of public entities (including the cities of Chicago, San Diego, Tempe, Buffalo Grove, Berkeley, and Santa Barbara, as well as the states of California, Illinois, and Connecticut) have canceled major charitable donations (of money or preferential land access) that had historically been granted to the Scouts.

Related issues

Membership size

BSA records show that the number of Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts has dropped in recent years. It is unclear why membership has dropped and whether the membership controversy has had an effect on membership levels. Scouts Canada, which has more inclusionary membership policies, has also experienced a substantial membership decline.

During the same time period, membership increased in other youth organizations, such as the Girl Scouts of the USA and the BSA's Learning for Life program. Both the US Census Bureau and the US Department of Education recorded an increase in total available youth during this time frame.

Some local councils have reported membership size numbers in excess of their actual number of members. The practice, presumably done to obtain more grant money and so that paid professional Scouters can retain their positions, may have been going on for years but only recently has it been reported by the media. To help ensure that membership numbers are reported correctly, BSA adopted new membership validation procedures for use beginning in 2006.

Unitarian Universalist religious emblems programs

Main article: Unitarian Universalist religious emblems programs

The Boy Scouts of America's stance on homosexuality and atheism has brought them into conflict with the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) — a "theologically liberal" religion that lists "affirming the inherent worth and dignity of every person" as one of its central tenets.

The Boy Scouts of America recognizes and encourages various religious emblems programs, in which Cub and Boy Scouts can work with their religious leaders to earn an emblem for their individual faiths. In 1998, the BSA removed recognition of the UUA programs for Cub and Boy Scouts, feeling the UUA program "contains several statements which are inconsistent with Scouting’s values". Most of the statements involved the UUA's disapproval of BSA's membership policies on gays and atheists.

External links

Sites supportive of the Boy Scouts of America's policies

• Boy Scouts of America's official legal site
• Eagle Scout Rally for Tradition Foundation
• Scouting Legal Defense Fund
• Save Our Scouts

Sites critical of the Boy Scouts of America's policies

• Inclusive Scouting
• Scouting for All
• Discrimination in the Boy Scouts of America
• Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance's Webpage on the BSA