Boy Scouts, Pentagon revisit sexual orientation and gender identity
The organizations’ leaders cite ‘outdated’ rules barring homosexuals from leading Boy Scout troops and transgender people from serving in the military.
On Monday, the Boy Scouts of America’s executive committee unanimously voted to allow gay adult troop leaders to serve in its organization.
On May 26, the organization’s national president, Robert Gates, urged the committee to change its policy, saying the current leadership standards “cannot be sustained
“We must deal with the world as it is, not as we might wish it to be,” Gates said.
The decision will allow local Boy Scout troops select leaders without regard to their sexual orientation, while allowing religiously run troops to continue banning homosexual or bisexual leaders.
Boy Scouts of America’s national executive board is scheduled to meet July 27 to ratify the vote and officially end the ban.
The organization posted the news on its blog, concluding the release with the following statement:
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