Eagles Dare

When I was in high school, one of my various extracurricular activities was going on campouts as part of the Boy Scouts of America's Detroit Area Council Troop #23.

It didn't start out that way, mind you. My scouting origins started elsewhere; first in the DAC's Cub Scout Pack #1019, followed by Troop #1019, both stationed at Hickory Grove Elementary School, within a metaphorical earshot of my Bloomfield Hills upbringing. But at some point during my scouting years, I made the transfer to Troop #23, following in the footsteps of my father (and a number of other relatives).

Troop #23 was the last remaining all-Jewish troop in the Detroit metropolitan area, making it both unique among scouting organizations and more conducive to the unique philosophical world that comes with being Jewish. It also had a long, proud history within the metro Detroit scouting community. It was founded in 1910, and its scoutmaster, Nathan Trager, had been its leader for decades.

Being active in the scouts was an amazing experience, filled with friendships and networking, proactive thinking about the future, learning valuable life skills, and those campouts - both weekend and summer. (I tell you, there is nothing in the world like going to a winter scouting jamboree, pitching a tent in three feet of snow, and cooking meals on a portable propane stove!)

Being part of the Boy Scouts also led to many an awkward moment with high school friends, who didn't "get" the scouting lifestyle. I didn't let the overt or covert mocking that took place impact me, though; I wore my olive green uniform with pride, earning a ton of achievements (in the form of merit badges) and accolades (in the form of ranks), including the highest honor - that of Eagle Scout - on March 16, 1982, four days before my 18th birthday.

I was Eagle Scout #104 out of the 105 achieved under Mr. Trager's leadership; #103 was my close friend Mark Lawton, and #105 was Trager's grandson, Jeff. That I achieved Eagle was somewhat remarkable, since despite my love of the scouting life, it was not an absolute love; I enjoyed a roughly 18-month-long self-chosen sabbatical (hey, teenagers are known to be indecisive at times), and returned to Troop #23 with just enough time to achieve the honor. In doing so, I became the first member of my immediate family to reach the rank of Eagle (my father didn't quite get there, but he did become a member of the BSA's exclusive Order of the Arrow, scouting's "National Honor Society" of sorts).

My Eagle status came in handy when looking at potential college club memberships and gainful employment opportunities, as it showed I could be counted on as a responsible member of society, with a plethora of leadership and world knowledge skills, who could (despite the aforementioned sabbatical) set out and achieve goals.

Sadly, Troop #23 met its demise a few years after I earned my Eagle. A combination of reasons - including (but not limited to) apathy, dwindling numbers, the changing demographics of the area, and costs - led to the group's death.

But I treasure my memories of being part of Troop #23.

As for the BSA's decades-long stance opposing the allowance of gays to be part of its insular world ... not so much.

Some background: In 1991, following the high-profile removal of several scouting leaders from their positions due to sexual orientation, the BSA released an official statement prohibiting gay people from acting in leadership positions: "We believe homosexual conduct is inconsistent with the requirement in the Scout oath that a Scout be morally straight and in the Scout law that a Scout be clean in word and deed. Homosexuals do not provide a desirable role model for Scouts." And in 2000, the US Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that as the BSA is a private organization, its policies are legal.

Since then, many pundits - including a number of Eagle Scouts - have taken the BSA to task for its discriminatory policy. Specifically, they note the idea a private organization can legally discriminate is ludicrous. Individuals interact with private groups on a daily basis, they note; under the SCOTUS ruling, theoretically, stores can refuse you entry. Restaurants and bars can refuse you service. Electrical and water companies - many of which are privately run - can refuse to maintain you as a client. Doctors can refuse to treat you. Hospitals can divert you en-route to other facilities, effectively refusing to save your life.

Others have questioned whether the BSA is truly even a "private" organization, given conflicting evidence over its status. In 2005, Fox News noted the BSA "enjoys massive and unique tax-funded support from governments both local and federal. On the local level, for example, the city of San Diego was targeted because it allowed the Boy Scouts' headquarters to operate in a city-owned park for $1 per year and to use other city-owned facilities without any rent. On the federal level, the Pentagon provided an estimated $6 to $8 million from 1997 to 2001 to assist a Boy Scouts Jamboree -- an event which is traditionally held on military bases."

About the taxpayer support, American Civil Liberties Union spokesperson Linda Hills stated, "The Boy Scouts can't have it both ways. ... If they truly are a private religious organization, free to engage in any form of discrimination they choose, then they are not entitled to a government subsidy."

Why is this important today? If you haven't been following the most recent news, in April of this year, Ohio mom and Cub Scout den mother Jennifer Tyrrell was ousted from her son's den leader because she is gay. Tyrrell contacted the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and begins an online petition to end the policy. National media, including the Associated Press, ABC News, CNN, MSNBC, the Los Angeles Times and The New York Times, begin following the story.

In late May, Zach Wahls - an Eagle Scout raised by two mothers in Iowa - delivered 275,000 signatures of Tyrrell’s petition to the BSA’s National Annual Meeting. In early June, the BSA announced it would be reviewing the policy, which - if adopted - would throw out the national ban and allow local chartering organizations to decide whether or not they would accept gay youth and leaders.

Sounds like a plan to me!

Not so fast, there. Despite the national petitioning and informational presentations, Tyrrell, Wahls, and the rest of the open-minded and forward-thinking scouting world still lost the battle, after a clandestine 11-member committee "was unanimous in its conclusion" there was no place for gay people in the scouts. "Scouting believes that good people can personally disagree on this topic and still work together to achieve the life-changing benefits to youth through Scouting," said the Scout's statement. "While not all board members may personally agree with this policy, and may choose a different direction for their own organizations, BSA leadership agrees this is the best policy for the organization."

Um ... the committee has been discretely examining this issue for two years.

So much for that whole post-Wahls "we'll review the policy" thing from seven weeks ago, I guess.

The real problem with scouting entering the 21st Century - where, guess what? Homosexuality is a part of our world! - is that the BSA is a group guided by the Southern Baptist Convention, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Mormon Church. Until the influence of these conservative religious groups wanes, a new policy is doubtful, if not wishful thinking. As the Los Angeles Times noted, what's really happening here is a purely business decision about the BSA's sustainability, driven by the influence of these powerful religious benefactors. Roughly 400,000 of the 2.7 million BSA membership "belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," which "encourages members to become involved in the Boy Scouts, and has its own section on the Boy Scouts of America webpage."

GLAAD President Herndon Graddick noted, "The only 'character development' and 'values-based leadership training’ the Boy Scouts have taught our young people in this case is that blatant discrimination is OK. Tossing aside the hard work and leadership of a committed mom because of who she loves is not a ‘value’ that a majority Americans want taught to their children."

In response to the BSA's most recent decree, a number of high-profile scouting alum - including gay actor George Takei of Star Trek fame - have blasted the decision. "These policies by the BSA reinforce that gay people are unfit to be part of this national organization because of who they are. They perpetuate the irresponsible and unsupportable stereotype that gay people prey upon children. And they must be met with staunch resistance until they fall," Takei stated in his blog.

Even presidential candidate Mitt Romney - himself a Mormon, as well as former member of the Boy Scouts of America's National Executive Board - endorsed the idea during his 1994 senate campaign:

"I believe that the Boy Scouts of America does a wonderful service for this country. I support the right of the Boy Scouts of America to decide what it wants to do on that issue. I feel that all people should be able to participate in the Boy Scouts regardless of their sexual orientation."

Agreed. Wholeheartedly.

I am both an Eagle Scout and proud supporter of marriage equality. I believe these actions are completely un-scoutlike and extremely discriminatory, and make me ashamed of the current BSA leaders. IMHO, they are in direct opposition of everything the organization is supposed to stand for. The BSA is an organization charged with guiding its members and helping to shape and mold boys into young men as future leaders of tommorrow. In today's society, as well as future societies, this means teaching tolerance and acceptance of ALL peoples - regardless of sexual orientation. "Do a good turn daily" does not mean to ban youth leaders and future Eagle Scouts simply because they are gay. In the scouts, our leaders always told us to respect everyone, not just those in a BSA uniform.

I cannot see how the BSA can uphold the old oath and law and still exclude some Americans from their ranks. They may as well be reclassified as the Bull Shitters of America.

There may be some hope at the end of the tunnel. The Minneapolis-based North Star Council refuses to accept the national decision, and will continue to accept gays and lesbians as leaders - and as scouts. Scouts Canada is open and accepting of LBGT youth and leaders, "regardless of gender, race, culture, religious belief, sexual orientation or economic circumstance." Further, counter-balancing the homophobia and financial clout of the churches are gay-friendly policies (backed by the financial clout) of board members like Ernst & Young and AT&T, both of which have expressed severe reservation of the Scouts' ongoing anti-gay policies.

Until then, the fight continues.

It would behoove the BSA to go full-throttle inclusionary, not just for moral reasons, but financial and survival. The statistics bear it out: the organization has experienced a proportional membership decline among younger generations. The BSA is an organization that offers merit badges on citizenship - in the community, the nation, and the world. The BSA should be taking into account such citizenship - at all levels, including its highest - is inclusionary. If not, Troop #23 won't be the only aspect of the Boy Scouts of America relegated to footnote status.