Let's let Dr. Gates know that we think this is a problem that needs to be solved...
I think Dr. Gates got the message. He said this at the BSA National Annual Meeting this morning.
"Finally, let me address membership policy.
I told you a year ago that I would oppose re-opening this issue during my two-year term as president of the BSA. I had hoped then for a respite during which we could focus on healing our divisions from the 2013 decision, improving our program, strengthening our finances and ending our decline in membership.
However, events during the past year have confronted us with urgent challenges I did not foresee and which we cannot ignore. We cannot ignore growing internal challenges to our current membership policy, from some councils - like the greater New York council, the Denver Area Council, and others - in open defiance of the policy, to more and more councils taking a position in their mission statements and public documents contrary to national policy.
Nor can we ignore the social, political and juridical changes taking place in our country - changes taking place at a pace over this past year no one anticipated. I remind you of the recent debates we have seen in places like Indiana and Arkansas over discrimination based on sexual orientation, not to mention the impending U.S. supreme court decision this summer on gay marriage.
I am not asking the national board for any action to change our current policy at this meeting. But I must speak as plainly and bluntly to you as I spoke to presidents when I was director of CIA and Secretary of Defense. We must deal with the world as it is, not as we might wish it to be. The status quo in our movement's membership standards cannot be sustained.
We can expect more councils to openly challenge the current policy. While technically we have the authority to revoke their charters, such an action would deny the lifelong benefits of scouting to hundreds of thousands of boys and young men today and vastly more in the future. I will not take that path.
...
Our oath calls upon us to do our duty to God and our country. The country is changing and we are increasingly at odds with the legal landscape at both the state and federal levels. And, as a movement, we find ourselves with a policy more than a few of our church sponsors reject - thus placing Scouting between a boy and his church.
The challenges are before us now. The executive committee, the national executive board and our legal counsel will work to determine our responses and our best strategy. We want and value your thoughts on all this, recognizing the importance of protecting our core values.
The one thing we cannot do is put our heads in the sand and pretend this challenge will go away or abate. Quite the opposite is happening.
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Every day, in every community in America, Scouting is changing the lives of boys and young men - teaching them skills and leadership, helping them build character and integrity. Every day, in every community, scouting makes those communities better places to live. We have been doing this for 105 years. I am confident we will do so for another 105 years as long as we stand together, united in our singular mission to serve American youth.
I am honored to work with all of you to give our young people the wisdom, direction and confidence to be the best they can be.
Thank you."
Celebrate the change, join us for the San Francisco Pride Parade:
Sunday, June 28th, 2015
We'll be hosting a parade contingent again this year, so mark your calendars and plan to join us.
This is a free event and all current and former scouts, friends, parents, supporters... are invited to march with us.
How else can you do to help?
1. Speak out. Let your council know that you want them to issue a non-discrimination statement today.
2. Join Scouts for Equality. We're not the enemy, we're the future.
3. Wear the Inclusive Scouting Knot on your uniform. Let gay scouts know you've got their back. (Don't have one - e-mail me with your address and I'll hook you up with one.)
America needs scouting, by working together we can make scouting available to every family in America.
Please keep the conversation going...
Yours in Scouting,
Wendell Baker
SFE- Golden Gate
goldengate@scoutsforequality.com
Check out our Facebook page for more information on the San Francisco Pride Parade.
