Letter: Protect the Boy Scouts of America
The Supreme Court, in a majority ruling on June 28, 2000, stated that the Boy Scouts of America can bar homosexuals from being troop leaders and that forcing the BSA to accept homosexuals would violate its constitutional right of freedom of association, free speech under the Fir1st Amendment and its “right of expressive association.”
The recent proposal from the CEO of Ernst & Young, John Turley, who has a position on the executive board of the BSA, to leave the decision to allow a homosexual man to be a troop leader up to the individual Scouting districts concerns me for a number of reasons.
I have been associated with the BSA for 20 years; seven years as a Boy Scout and 13 years as an Assistant Scoutmaster and adult leader. In the Scout Oath, a boy pledges to keep himself “physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.” To inject homosexuality into a young boy’s life at the ages 11-18, when his sexual awareness and maturity are being formed, ignites a powder keg of confusion that is unnecessary, unwanted and harmful.
The bridge to Boy Scouts from Cub Scouts means that the boys leave mom at home and join the organization of young men and male leaders and mentors. Outside of the military, the Boy Scouts provides the transition to male leadership, bonding and character development that our young men desperately need for themselves and for the future with their family and eventually as leaders in their community. No gray area of sexual orientation confusion during this process need exist.
The BSA has measures in place to help identify and prevent adult or peer sexual advances. Every adult scout leader goes through on-going training to identify or prevent any sexual activity within the troop. Why add the extra pressure of homosexuality on our young sons? Isn’t society already trying to cripple our young men through gender confusion in our schools, films, TV, books and social media outlets? Enough is enough.
Michael Chol
area sales manager
Baton Rouge