Discrimination in a Uniform

Richard S. Gilbert, Parish Minister
First Unitarian Church of Rochester

The Boy Scouts of America may have won a legal battle when the Supreme Court upheld their right to exclude gay men from leadership roles, but they have suffered a moral defeat. When it agreed that the BSA had a right to dismiss James Dale because of his avowed homosexuality, it struck a blow for homophobia. This "right to discriminate" is a hollow victory for an organization purporting to guide young boys in moral, social and spiritual development.

I feel strongly about this because scouting has played such a major — and until now — positive role in my life. At the 1951 National Boy Scout Jamboree in Valley Forge, I had a transformative experience that led me to ministry. A few years later I received the God and Country Award given jointly by my church and BSA. I am an Eagle Scout and member of the Order of the Arrow; both my sons are Eagle scouts, and one has served as a scoutmaster. I have worked with many boys over the years on the Unitarian Universalist Association's Religion in Life program. Then, because of my denomination's support of gay rights and our broad understanding of what reverence means, our program has been decertified. This has been the culmination of a long and arduous struggle to encourage BSA to practice what it preaches — respect for another's faith.

And now this. The Court argued that this discrimination is defensible for a private group exercising its First Amendment rights. It is not clear to me the BSA is a private group, supported as it is by many public schools, fire and police departments, to say nothing of the United Way and many religious groups. Such support must now be called into question, especially in those states with human rights legislation that protects those of different sexual orientations.

As a former scout I am embarrassed that such free speech is used to defame a group of people who are guilty of nothing but the way they choose to express love. The implicit equation of homosexuality and pedophilia has no basis in facts. Any leader who abuses boys should be held accountable — be they heterosexual or homosexual. It is by actions people should be judged. By all accounts James Dale was an exemplary leader of outstanding character whose only fault, according to scout headquarters, was that he was openly gay.

In May of 1991 I wrote the BSA Executive Director to express my views and ask clarification; in October of 1998 I wrote a similar letter in response to a fund raising appeal from our own Otetiana Council. To date I have not had the courtesy of a reply. My suspicion is that many — if not most — local scout leaders are terribly embarrassed by the Texas-based Boy Scout organization. It is tragic that outstanding leaders are denied opportunity to serve. It is even more tragic that many gay boys may be denied participation in an organization that otherwise teaches self-reliance, respect for others, environmental responsibility and service to community. To discriminate against them sets a terrible example for our society!

I urge other religious leaders and scout officials to rise up in opposition to a discriminatory policy that goes against the American grain, that reverses the tide of human rights progress, that divides rather than unifies our nation. The term "morally straight" never meant homophobia in my years as a scout or the father of scouts. That is a moral invention of a few men who in their limited biblical understanding fail to understand the biblical injunction of the Hebrew prophets who proclaimed justice for all and Jesus who urged his followers to "do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

My church has tried to work from within to help boy scouting live up to its promise as one of the nation's premier youth organizations for boys. The Girl Scouts have an inclusive policy that challenges this anachronistic homophobia present in boy scout officialdom. Why have the boy scouts stumbled so badly on this moral issue?

Looking at my Eagle pin I am left with a terrible dilemma. Boy scouting has played such a powerful and positive part in my life. Should I turn it in as a protest? I'm still wrestling with that issue. It is a sad day for scouting and for me that I am forced to do so.

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