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Boy Scouts of America membership controversies

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The Boy Scouts of America logo

The Boy Scouts of America (BSA), the most prominent Scouting organization in the United States (U.S.), has certain policies which prohibit gays and atheists from participation in their organization. Because of these policies, there have been several cases in which both adult Scout leaders and Scouts have been expelled from the BSA for being atheists, agnostics, or homosexuals. [1]

The Boy Scouts of America and its supporters argue that these policies are essential in its mission to "instill in young people lifetime values and develop in them ethical character". Critics contend that one or both of the policies amount to immoral and possibly illegal discrimination.

The organization's right to set such policies has been upheld repeatedly by both state and federal courts. Moreover, in 2000, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed that the Boy Scouts of America is a private organization which can set its own membership standards.

Other disputes have arisen from opposition to the organization's policies regarding gays and atheists. One dispute involves the Boy Scouts of America's treatment of individuals and organizations that have publicly disapproved of some of their policies. A much larger on-going dispute concerns the BSA's access to public resources, such as the use of public buildings or public land.

The Boy Scouts of America's position

Scouting's core beliefs and their history

Religion has been essential to Scouting since its very inception. As early as 1908, Scouting founder Baden-Powell wrote in the first Scout handbook that “No man is much good unless he believes in God and obeys His laws. So every Scout should have a religion." The World Organization of the Scout Movement with few exceptions, requires all member National Scout Organizations to reference "duty to God" in their respective Scout Promise (words such as "my religion" or "Dharma" are sometimes used instead of the word "God"). In Cub Scouting, Cub Scouts working on the Bear rank must complete a requirement about their faith although they, like Boy Scouts, are not required to adhere to an organized religion. All members of the BSA's traditional programs may wear their faith's Religious Emblem on their uniform assuming their faith has one, it is approved by the Boy Scouts of America, and they have earned it.

Additionally, two of the central tenets of the Boy Scouts of America are the Scout Oath and Scout Law. All members are required, as a condition of membership, to promise to uphold and obey both of these pledges. In the BSA Scout Oath, the Scout promises, in part, to be "morally straight" and to "to do my duty to God". The BSA Scout Law holds that a Scout is "Clean" and "Reverent". The text of the BSA's Scout Oath and Scout Law has remained unchanged since they were approved in 1911.

As early as 1978, the Boy Scouts of America circulated a memorandum with national executive staff explicitly stating that they held the Scout Oath and Law to be incompatible with homosexuality. Similarly, since at least 1985, the BSA has explicitly interpreted the Scout Oath and Law as being incompatible with agnosticism and atheism. In both instances, the organization asserted that it was not a "new policy" to expel atheists and gays -- rather, the BSA argued it was just enforcing long-held policies which had never been published or publicly challenged.

Position on atheists and agnostics

The Boy Scouts of America's position is that agnostics and atheists cannot participate as Scouters (BSA registered adult leader volunteers and salaried employees) or Scouts (youth members):

"The Boy Scouts of America maintains that no member can grow into the best kind of citizen without recognizing an obligation to God. In the first part of the Scout Oath or Promise the member declares, ‘On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law.’ The recognition of God as the ruling and leading power in the universe and the grateful acknowledgment of His favors and blessings are necessary to the best type of citizenship and are wholesome precepts in the education of the growing members." [2]

The BSA believes that an atheist or agnostic is not an appropriate role model of the Scout Oath and Law for boys and thus will not accept such adults as leaders.[1] The Boy Scouts of America prohibits youths and adults who do not agree to the Scout Oath, which includes the provision of doing one's "duty to God".

Position on homosexuals

Since 1981, openly-gay adults have been officially prohibited from joining the Boy Scouts of America. The BSA "believes that a known or avowed homosexual is not an appropriate role model of the Scout Oath and Law". [3]

The language used to describe the BSA's policy's on homosexuals has evolved over time. Prior to 2004, the policy explicitly stated:

"We do not allow for the registration of avowed homosexuals as members or as leaders of the BSA."[2]

In 2004, the BSA composed a new policy statement that is somewhat more ambiguous:

"Boy Scouts of America believes that homosexual conduct is inconsistent with the obligations in the Scout Oath and Scout Law to be morally straight and clean in thought, word, and deed. The conduct of youth members must be in compliance with the Scout Oath and Law, and membership in Boy Scouts of America is contingent upon the willingness to accept Scouting’s values and beliefs. Most boys join Scouting when they are 10 or 11 years old. As they continue in the program, all Scouts are expected to take leadership positions. In the unlikely event that an older boy were to hold himself out as homosexual, he would not be able to continue in a youth leadership position." [4]

Based on this, it remains an open question as to whether BSA policy might allow some openly-gay youths to be members, so long as they do not take a "leadership" position. The policy requires that all BSA members be morally compliant with the Scout Oath and Scout Law, which is interpreted by the BSA National Council as excluding homosexual conduct and may be interpreted by some as implicitly prohibiting homosexuals in general.

Implementation of the ban on homosexuality

There is considerable variability in how individual local councils of Boy Scouts of America have attempted to interpret and implement the official policies issued by the National Council. The BSA has stated in a press release that, "Boy Scouting makes no effort to discover the sexual orientation of any person."[3]

Some members of Boy Scouts of America have suggested that, in practice, the current policy is implemented in a way that is very similar to the U.S. Armed Forces' "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy on homosexuality. In this view, homosexuals are allowed to remain members of the organization as long as they remain silent about their sexual orientation. To proponents of this view, Boy Scouts of America makes no attempt to inquire about or otherwise investigate its members' sexual orientation.

Several local councils of the Boy Scouts of America have issued statements likening their own practices to "Don't Ask, Don't Tell". [5] It remains a point of dispute within Scouting as to whether or not these "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" practices are consistent with the official policies that have been issued by the National Council.

National Council's policy has been interpreted by some local councils and Scouting units as supporting the practice of actively inquiring about or investigating their members' sexual orientation [6] and many within Scouting have reported practices which are markedly different from "Don't Ask, Don't Tell". Some expelled members report being directly asked about their orientations or being subjected to prolonged "interrogations" about their sexuality.[7] In one case, a high-level employee of BSA was fired after the organization somehow obtained a copy of a receipt from a vacation he had taken at a Gay tourism resort. [8]

In any event, local councils are required to adhere to National Council policies as a condition of their charter. Local councils must be especially careful not to publicly breach these policies.

Support for the Boy Scouts of America

Support from within Boy Scouts of America

A number of people within the Boy Scouts of America have voiced strong and unequivocal support for the policies. In 2002, the National Executive Board of Boy Scouts of America reiterated its support for the policies and affirmed that "the Boy Scouts of America shall continue to follow its traditional values and standards of leadership".[9] Columnist Hans Zeiger, an Eagle Scout, has founded the Scout Honor Coalition, a grassroots organization dedicated to supporting the policies. [10] Also in 2002, a group of current and former members of the BSA joined "to support and defend the principles of the Scout Oath and Law".[11]

Support from government

Although the U.S. legislative branch, as a whole, has never explicitly voiced support for the exclusionary policies, the Congress has on several occasions passed resolutions and bills in support of the Boy Scouts of America and its access to governmental resources-- actions which are often interpreted as indirect support for the BSA's stance on gays and atheists.

Both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate have overwhelmingly passed resolutions in support of the Boy Scouts of America. In November 2004, the House passed a resolution, by a vote of 391 to 3, recognizing "the Boy Scouts of America for the public service the organization performs". [12] Then, in February, 2005, the House passed a resolution, by a vote of 418 to 7, stating that "the Department of Defense should continue to exercise its long-standing statutory authority to support the activities of the BSA, in particular the periodic National and World Scout Jamborees." [13]

Additionally, Congress has twice passed bills directly affecting the governmental support controversy. In 2002, the U.S. Congress passed the Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act, which encouraged the BSA's access to educational facilities. In July 2005, the Senate voted 98 to 0 in favor of the Support Our Scouts Act, enacted in December 2005, which encourages both governmental support of the Boy Scouts in general and federal support of the National Scout Jamboree.

In August 2005, President George W. Bush addressed the National Scout Jamboree, and although he did not directly discuss the controversies, he reiterated his support for the organization. [14]

Support from others

A wide range of individuals, commentators, and conservative groups have spoken out of in support of the Boy Scouts of America. The BSA legal website provides a list of editorials written in their support. [15] In addition, a conservative civil libertarian group, the American Civil Rights Union, has set up a defense fund for the Boy Scouts of America, and has routinely helped them with lawsuits. [16]

A number of religious organizations, particularly those in the United States, regard homosexuality as immoral (see Religion and sexual orientation). In general, those religious groups and their members have been strong supporters of BSA's policies. In particular, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a longtime supporter of the Boy Scouts of America, strongly opposes homosexuality. Mormon Scouts make up about 10% of Boy Scouts of America, and the Church sponsors about 30,000 Scout units.[17] Church leadership has even threatened to withdraw from the Scouting program if they were compelled to accept openly homosexual Scout leaders. [18]

Opposition to Boy Scouts of America's policies

Opposition from within the Scouting movement

Some within Boy Scouts of America are opposed to the exclusionary policies. According to the Boy Scouts' own internal polls, about 30% of Scout parents do not support excluding gays. [19] In response to the controversy, some Eagle Scouts (around 100) have returned their badges in protest.

In 2001, seven Cub Scout packs announced they would admit gays in violation of the national policy-- a move which resulted in their charters being revoked and the packs being disbanded by the National Council. Several other local councils have requested, and been denied, permission to sign non-discriminatory statements.

A number of former Scouts and leaders have formed organizations that advocate the inclusion of gays and atheists. In 1991, William Boyce Mueller, the grandson of original Boy Scouts of America founder William Dickson Boyce, founded a group of gay former Scouts called "The Forgotten Scouts". Another prominent organization is Scouting for All, which was founded by veteran Scouter Dave Rice, Steven Cozza a 12-year old Life Scout who would go on to earn the rank of Eagle Scout at the age of fourteen, and Steven's father, Scouter Scott Cozza. There is also the Coalitions for Inclusive Scouting.

Filmmaker Steven Spielberg, himself an Eagle Scout, had been a long-time supporter of Scouting, even going so far as to depict a young Indiana Jones as a Boy Scout in the 1989 film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. In 2001, Spielberg resigned from the BSA's advisory board in protest, saying, "it has deeply saddened me to see the Boy Scouts of America actively and publicly participating in discrimination." [20]

Many other Scouting organizations have membership policies very different from that of the Boy Scouts of America. Homosexuals are not restricted from membership or leadership positions in Scouts Canada or most European associations, as for example in The Scout Association of the United Kingdom, Ring deutscher Pfadfinderverbände of Germany, or the Swedish Guide and Scout Association; all are members of World Organization of the Scout Movement, the same international Scouting organization that the Boy Scouts of America belongs to.

The Girl Scouts of America allows homosexuals to participate at all levels, and allows its members to substitute another word or phrase in place of "God" when reciting the Girl Scout Promise. Other Scouting and Scouting-like organizations have policies of including homosexuals and atheists, such as Camp Fire Boys and Girls, SpiralScouts International, Star Scouting America, and 4-H.

Opposition from others

Perhaps the most vocal opponent of the policies has been the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which helped file several of the lawsuits against the Boy Scouts of America. A few members of the U.S. Congress have also spoken out against the BSA's policies.[21]

The Unitarian Universalist Association has vocally opposed the BSA's membership exclusions. This dispute ultimately led to a controversial dissolution of any ties between the two organizations (see below).

In 2001, the Commission on Social Action of Reform Judaism, citing a commitment to ending discrimination in all forms, issued a memorandum recommending that their congregations stop hosting BSA troops and that parents withdraw their children from all of the Boy Scouts of America's programs.[22] Additionally, the General Synod of the United Church of Christ issued a statement condemning the BSA's policy and stating that, "Discrimination against anyone based on sexual orientation is contrary to our understanding of the teachings of Christ." [23]

Loss of private funding and support

In the wake of the controversy, many private institutions have severed their ties to the Boy Scouts of America. About 50 United Way chapters, including those in Miami, Orlando, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Seattle, have withdrawn all funding. The BSA has also lost all funding from several large corporations that used to be regular donors, such as Chase Manhattan Bank, Levi Strauss, Wells Fargo, Fleet Bank, and CVS/pharmacy. In another case, Pew Charitable Trusts, which had consistently supported the BSA for over fifty years, decided to cancel a $100,000 donation and cease any future donations. [24]

Loss of public funding and land access

A number of public entities (including the cities of Chicago, San Diego, Tempe, Buffalo Grove, Berkeley, and Santa Barbara, as well as the states of California, Illinois, and Connecticut) have canceled major charitable donations (of money or preferential land access) that had historically been granted to the Scouts. [25] [26] [27]

Litigation over the policies

During the 1980s and 1990s, there were several high-profile lawsuits in which individuals asked the courts to require Boy Scouts of America to include gays or atheists. In 1981, Tim Curran, an openly-gay adult volunteer, sued asking that he be included in the Scouting program. In 1991, twin brothers William and Michael Randall, who had been expelled for refusing to swear a "duty to God", sued to be allowed to participate in the program. In addition, there were at least five or six other prominent lawsuits involving basically the same issue.

Ultimately, the Boy Scouts of America won every case. [4] The Courts have repeatedly held that the Boys Scouts of America are a private organization and therefore have the right to set their own membership standards and to exclude whomever they wish. In particular, in Boy Scouts of America v. Dale (2000), the U.S. Supreme court ruled that the BSA's right to freedom of association gave them the authority to exclude a gay Scoutmaster.

In the wake of these rulings, the right of the BSA to set their own membership standards has been firmly established, and in recent years there have been no major lawsuits attempting to obtain a direct court order mandating the inclusion of gays or atheists.

Litigation is on-going about whether the BSA, given their policies regarding non-theists and gays, can or should be given privileges by the government and to what extent.

Governmental sponsorship of Scouting units

In response to BSA's policies, the American Civil Liberties Union has used legal pressure to cause governmental entities to be unable to directly sponsor/host Boy Scouts of America troops and packs -- they will no longer serve as the chartered organizations (operators) of Scouting units. In 2004, the U.S. Department of Defense announced it would end direct sponsorship of Scouting units. [28] In March 2005, Boy Scouts of America agreed to transfer charters issued to governmental entities to private entities. [29] Previously, about 400 Scouting units had been sponsored by Defense Department organizations, and over 10,000 Scouting units had been sponsored by other governmental entities, primarily public schools. [30]

Access to public lands and facilities

The future of Boy Scouts of America's access to support from governmental resources is in question.[5] Historically, the BSA has been granted certain special access not usually afforded to other private organizations. These rights include priority access to government lands, the right to recruit directly within public schools, the right to meet on their facilities, as well as discounted rates for access. In many cases, schools provided the BSA with such support -- support that they would likely deny to other, more-controversial groups, or religious organizations. [31] Many state and local governments still allow the BSA to use public land or facilities. Currently, the U.S. Department of Defense spends an average of $2 million a year by being the official host of the National Scout Jamboree, which meets every four years on a U.S. Army base.

In light of the recent debate, there have been many questions about the future of this sort of governmental support for the BSA. Critics of the BSA have sued to prevent governmental entities from granting what they feel is "special" access to the Boy Scouts of America. The BSA, meanwhile, has sued governmental entities for what they see as "preventing equal access" to them.

In general, it seems possible that Boy Scouts of America may, in the future, be denied any "special" or "preferential" access to governmental support such as being the only private religious organization allowed to recruit in school. At the same time, however, a number of laws have re-iterated that the BSA must still get "equal" access that is afforded to all other private and religious organizations. So, for example, if a city allows any and all private organizations to hold meetings in a civic center, the city must also afford the same access to the Boy Scouts of America. However, while the Boy Scouts were provided with preferential discounts to these facilities in the past, the organization must now pay the same rate as other private organizations.

One of the issues for many governmental agencies is that for the past two decades, the BSA has asserted that not only is it a private youth organization, but has gone on record describing itself as a religious organization. Not a religion, but an organization that inculcates a religious message to its members. This assertion, coupled with the BSA's public stance on discrimination, has called into question many of its governmental special rights and financing it has received for almost 100 years. Many wonder why the BSA can recruit in the public schools, yet the local Baptist church is denied such access, or why the US Army hosts the BSA's Jamboree, yet provided no financial or logistical assistance when the Catholic Church held their World Youth Day in Denver. As asserted by the BSA, they are equivalent to such religious youth organizations and are thus not subject to anti-discrimination laws.

What precisely constitutes "special"-vs-"equal" access, and in particular whether the hosting of the National Jamboree is "special", is the subject of litigation that is, as of February 2006, still pending. (See Barnes-Wallace v. Boy Scouts of America and Winkler v. Rumsfeld). In March 2006, the California Supreme Court ruled in Evans v. Berkeley that the City of Berkeley could not be forced to continue providing financial support to a Berkeley-area BSA Group, the Sea Scouts.

Expulsions for public disagreement with the policies

The Boy Scouts of America forbids its adult members from using their leader status to express political views to the public or to youth members. Based on this policy, a few adult members who have spoken out in the press about controversial issues have had their memberships revoked. Efforts to change BSA policies by adult members are supposed to follow the internal flow of elections of delegates and officers from chartered organization to local council to National Council.

In one case, Dave Rice, a veteran Scoutmaster with over 59 years in Scouting, helped form Scouting for All-- an organization dedicated to changing the Boy Scouts of America's policies on gays and atheists. In 1998, Rice, a married grandfather who is active in the United Church of Christ, was expelled from Boy Scouts of America for allegedly "involving Scouting youth" in his effort to have a BSA policy changed.

Rice insists he obeyed all rules and guidelines, and that he never misused his leadership status or promoted any agenda during troop meetings. He also argues that Boy Scouts of America violated a number of their own due process rules by summarily dismissing him without granting him any chance to present evidence to a regional review board (as is required by the organization's own "Procedures for Maintaining Standards of Membership"). [32]

Membership size

The effect of the controversy on BSA membership numbers is inherently difficult to determine but is made even more confounding because of the practice of some local councils to fraudulently inflate their reported membership size in order to obtain more grant money and so that paid professional Scouters can retain their positions. The practice may have been going on for years but it has recently been publicly exposed. [33] [34] [35] To help ensure that membership numbers are reported correctly, BSA adopted new membership validation procedures for use beginning in 2006.[6]

Boy Scouts of America's own tallies show that the number of Cub and Boy Scouts dropped by at least 24% between 1997 and 2005. [36] Some suggest that a more accurate count would reveal an even greater membership loss. [37]

Some feel that this drop in membership is a direct result of the controversy surrounding the Boy Scouts of America. They point to the fact that during the same time period, membership has actually increased in other Scouting-related non-discriminatory organizations, such as the Girl Scouts USA and the BSA's Learning for Life program. [38] The fact that both the US Census Bureau and the US Department of Education record an increase in the total available youth to the BSA's traditional programs tends to support their argument. Others feel there is not any connection between the membership drop and the recent controversies. They point out that Scouts Canada, which is non-discriminatory, has also experienced a substantial membership decline.[7] They also claim the Boy Scouts of America's membership decline is explainable by other factors.

Whether young parents are not allowing their boys to join the BSA because of its membership policies or not, the steep decline in membership in the Cub Scouting program herald a much larger problem for the organization than its on-going litigation.

Unitarian-Universalism Religious Emblems

The Boy Scouts of America's stance on homosexuality and atheism has brought them into conflict with the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA)-- a "theologically liberal" religion which "emphasizes acceptance and inclusion of all peoples".

The Boy Scouts of America recognizes and encourages various Religious Emblems Programs, in which Cub and Boy Scouts can work with their religious leaders to earn an emblem for their individual faiths. In 1998, the BSA removed recognition of the UUA programs for Cub and Boy Scouts, feeling the UUA program "contains several statements which are inconsistent with Scouting’s values".[39] Most of the statements involved the UUA's disapproval of BSA's membership policies on gays and atheists.

See Religious Emblems Programs for fuller information.

Admission of girls

In the United States, boys and girls are sometimes segregated for the purposes of education, entertainment, and socialization. For example, single-sex membership is practiced in some private schools and in sporting groups. Like a few other youth organizations, the Boy Scouts of America admits only boys to its Boy Scout and Cub Scout programs (though girls age 14 and over may join Venturing). [8] Some people oppose single-sex organizations and therefore disapprove of BSA's boys-only membership policies.

See Single-sex education for a fuller discussion of the debate.

Sites supportive of the Boy Scouts of America's policies

Sites critical of the Boy Scouts of America's policies

Footnotes

  1. ^ "Case Study: Matt Hill". Inclusive Scouting .NET. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ "Duty to God". BSA Legal Issues. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ "Morally Straight". BSA Legal Issues. Retrieved February 28. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ "Morally Straight". BSA Legal Issues. Retrieved February 28. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ "Boston Minuteman Council:Policy of Nondiscrimination". BSA Discrimination.org. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ "Words don't hide homosexuality". WorldNetDaily. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ "A Review of BSA's Gay Policy". BSA Discrimination. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |acessdate= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Scouted Out". Mother Jones.com. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ "Boy Scouts of America Resolution". Boy Scouts of America– National Council. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ "Scout Honor Coalition". HansZeiger.net. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ "About Save our Scouts". Save our Scouts. Retrieved April 11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ "House Resolution 853: Recognizing the Boy Scouts of America for the public service the organization performs for neighborhoods and communities across the United States". Library of Congress. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Text "thomas.loc.gov" ignored (help)
  13. ^ "House Concurrent Resolution 6". Library of Congress. Retrieved April 13. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ "Bush Calls Scout Values 'America's Values'". CNSNews.com. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  15. ^ "What Others Are Saying". BSA Legal Issues. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  16. ^ "ACRU supports Scouting". Scouting Legal Defense Fund. Retrieved March 1. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  17. ^ "Brief of Amici Curiae, Boy Scouts of America v. James Dale" (PDF). 2000. Retrieved March 15. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  18. ^ "What Happens If Scouts Must Admit Gays?". Mormon News. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ "Saying No to bias in BSA, or not?". BSA Discrimination.org. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  20. ^ "Spielberg resigns from Boy Scouts board". Hollywood.com. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  21. ^ "Congressman Frank's Statement Supporting 'Scouting for All'". Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Text "Scouting for All" ignored (help)
  22. ^ "Memorandum: Boy Scouts of America". Union for Reform Judaism. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  23. ^ "UCC Condemns BSA's Policies". BSA Discrimination.org. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  24. ^ "The Impact of the Boy Scouts of America's Anti-Gay Discrimination". Lambda Legal. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  25. ^ "The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors told the BSA They Couldn't Use Its Facility Free of Charge as Long as They Had a Discriminatory Policy". Scouting for All. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  26. ^ "The Connecticut Human Rights Organization Affirmed Its Earlier Decision to Exclude the Boy Scouts from the State Employee Fund-raising Campaign". Scouting for All. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  27. ^ "The Impact of the Boy Scouts of America's Anti-Gay Discrimination". Lambda Legal. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  28. ^ "Pentagon Agrees to End Direct Sponsorship of Boy Scout Troops in Response to Religious Discrimination Charge". American Civil Liberties Union. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  29. ^ "National Boy Scout Organization Agrees to End All Local Government Direct Sponsorship of Troops and Packs". American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  30. ^ "Boy Scouts Jamboree to stay at Army base". Washington Times. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  31. ^ "Boy Scouts Say They're Like KKK Youth". Scouting for All. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  32. ^ "Dave Rice". Scouting for All. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  33. ^ "Boy Scouts Suspected of Inflating Rolls". Washington Post. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  34. ^ "Whistleblower Faults Scouts' Audit". WXIA 11Alive.com. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  35. ^ "Number of black Atlanta Boy Scouts in dispute". MSNBC. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  36. ^ "Boy Scouts of America Membership Declines". Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Text "Scouting for All" ignored (help)
  37. ^ "BSA Lose Parents". BSA Discrimination.org. Retrieved March 2. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  38. ^ "Saying No to bias in BSA, or not?". BSA Discrimination.org. Retrieved March 10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  39. ^ "Letter from the Boy Scouts of America to the Unitarian Universalist Association". UUA News and Events. Retrieved April 15. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
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