Boy Scouts Consider Admitting Gay Youth but Not Adults

Boy Scouts of America officials are going to call for an end to the organization’s ban on gay scouts but recommend continuing to prohibit gay adults from serving as troop leaders.

The resolution still must be voted on by the organization’s national council in May, but if it is approved, “no youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone,” BSA spokesman Deron Smith told the Reuters news service. But it would leave in place the ban on openly gay adult leaders, the Associated Press notes.

The group had earlier indicated it might adopt a policy of allowing each individual troop to set its own policy on admitting LGBT scouts and leaders. The proposal unveiled today came after several months of research and surveys, BSA officials said.

Some conservative activists and commentators have repeatedly painted gay adults as a danger to young people, despite all research to the contrary. See some of their statements here. A history of the debate over gays in scouting is here.

The BSA will submit the proposal to its 1,400-member national council the week of May 20, when the council gathers for its annual meeting in Texas.

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