AMERICAN ATHEISTS ACTION ALERT

May 28, 2003

BOY SCOUTS NATIONAL COUNCIL CONFERENCE IN PHILADELPHIA IS TARGET OF WEEKEND PROTESTS

When Boy Scout officials gather in Philadelphia this weekend for their annual national council meeting, they may find that many residents of the City of Brotherly Love are less than enamored with that organization's policy regarding gay and Atheist youth.

Protests are expected outside the Marriott Philadelphia hotel on Market Street, as a coalition of groups speaks out against what they say is blatant and inappropriate discrimination against homosexuals, nonbelievers and others.

The demonstrations are being organized by Scouting For All, a nationwide group that advocates changes in the BSA's discriminatory policies. At issue is the requirement that prospective Scouts and leaders swear an Oath to a deity and declare that they are "morally straight."

Scott Cozza, President of Scouting For All, says that the current BSA leadership has "corrupted both the Scout Oath and Law for their own political and religious agendas by discriminating against GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender) and atheist youth and adults.

"There is no room in Scouting for bigotry and discrimination of any form."

But the battle over discriminatory Scouting policies has been fought across the legal system and even drawn the attention of Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court.

The national Scouting organizations says that it is a non-profit group with a mission "to serve others by helping instill values in young people and, in other ways, to prepare them to make ethical choices of their lifetime in achieving their full potential." BSA officials have argued that forcing the group to admit homosexuals and Atheists not only contradicts the group's Oath, but would require members to associate with those individuals against their moral beliefs.

In court, the Boy Scouts have sought legal protection as a private "intimate association" that is exempt from anti-discrimination statutes and other laws which govern so-called public accommodations. Critics charge that the Scouts are neither personal nor private, but rather an organization which is open to the public and recruits a large membership by soliciting in public schools and other institutions. They also point out that for decades the BSA has enjoyed a special relationship with all levels of government, often receiving tax money, cost reductions when using public facilities such as parks and other "perks."

The President of the United States has traditionally been the honorary head of the Boy Scouts.

The Scouting policies have been challenged in a number of lawsuits, and numerous legal actions have recently sought to prevent the public funding of the BSA.

* In May, 1997, a federal court ruled that the Scouts was not a public enterprise, and was not, therefore, required to re-instate a gay police officer who was dismissed from the organization as a troop leader after his sexuality was revealed.

* In June, 1999, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission dismissed a plea which sought to use a public accommodations law to alter BSA policies. The complaint had been filed in 1993 by Atheist Margaret Downey, who had sued the organization after unsuccessfully trying to become a volunteer leader in a local Scouting Council. The BSA has won similar cases in Connecticut, Oregon, Kansas and Minnesota.

* In March, 1998, the California Supreme Court ruled that the Boy Scouts were not a "public accommodation."

* In Chicago, Atheist civil rights activist Rob Sherman has protested government assistance to the Boy Scouts of America, including sponsorship of an Explorer Post by the local police department. Sherman filed suit in July, 1997 citing a portion of the Explorer Code which declared, "I believe that America's strength lies in our trust in God and in the courage, strength and traditions of our people." As a result, the department severed its ties with the Explorer program.

* In Portland, Oregon, Nancy Powell and her son, Remington have challenged the unfettered access to public school classrooms the BSA enjoys for recruitment purposes.

* A New Jersey lawsuit also challenged BSA discrimination. James Dale had joined the Scouts at the age of eight, and went on to earn 25 merit badges as well as the coveted Eagle Scout Badge. He applied to be an adult leader in 1989, and was accepted as an Assistant Scoutmaster. In July, 1990 he was discharged from that position after being profiled in a local newspaper article concerning an address he gave at a seminar about the status of gay and lesbian youth. Scout officials told Dale that he was dismissed for violating "the standards for leadership established by the Boy Scouts of America, which specifically forbid membership to homosexuals."

Dale eventually filed a lawsuit in the Superior Court of New Jersey, arguing that the Scouting organization violated the state's Law Against Discrimination (LAD) barring such a practice in places of public accommodation on the basis of sexual orientation. The court dismissed the case, saying that the BSA was protected under the First Amendment rights of private association.

The Appellate Division of state court, however, reversed that ruling, declaring that the Scouts were a public accommodation due to a number of factors including public solicitation of members, and the fact that meetings were often open to the general public. The Supreme Court of New Jersey agreed.

On June 28, 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the New Jersey LAD did not apply to the Boy Scouts of America.

Whatever the legal conundrum over the Scouts, the organization is still wrong in discriminating against gays and nonbelievers says Ellen Johnson, President of American Atheists.

"Sexual orientation and religious disposition have nothing whatsoever to do with the actual goals of Scouting," said Johnson. "The BSA's policies on this matter are repugnant, and they marginalize millions of American youngsters seeking to participate in the Scouting program, as well as adults who have much to contribute."

Philly Protests Planned -- All Out!

The protest begins this Thursday at 8:00 AM in front of the Marriott Hotel, 1201 Market Street. Those attending this or any of the other pickets should bring appropriate signs and banners. There will be a 10:00 AM press conference at the Philadelphia Ethical Society Building, 1906 Rittenhouse Square. Among those speaking will be Scott Cozza of Scouting For All; Margaret Downey of the Freethought Society of Greater Philadelphia; Gregory Lattera, President of the Gay/Straight Alliance Club; Ellen Johnson, President of American Atheists; Chris Hayes, Inclusive Scouting Representative; Fran Kirschner, President of the Philadelphia Chapter of PFLAG; Rita Addessa of the Gay and Lesbian Task Force.

On Thursday night, there will be a forum panel with BSA members following the showing of the film "Scout's Honor." This takes place at 8:00 PM at the Marriot Hotel, 1201 Market Street.

On Friday, protests run from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM in front of the Marriot. At 8:00 PM there will be "A Walk in the Light of Change" candlelight vigil "in memory of GLBT youth who have taken their lives because they felt rejected and like they did not belong." The vigil will walk from the BSA's Cradle of Liberty Council headquarters at 22nd. and Winter Streets to the Marriott. Bring your own candles.

Saturday protests will run from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM at the Marriott. At 8:00 PM there will be a "Night of Hope-GSA Club/Gay Straight Alliance Club, GLBT fund raiser at the University of Pennsylvania's GLBT Center, 3907 Spruce Street. Dancing with a DJ begins at 8:00 PM and ends at midnight. All monies raised from this event go the support of GSA clubs of Philadelphia.

Details concerning this weekend's protests in Philadelphia can be found at the Scouting For All web site at http://www.scoutingforall.org.

For further information:

"Atheist scout says he'll fight decision to expel him from BSA," 10/30/02

"School violated rights of Atheist student in permitting BSA recruitment," 12/15/01

"As protest mount, legislation would protect federal ties to BSA," 10/8/00

"Bill to cut Scouts' congressional charter introduced..." 7/22/00

"California court: Boy Scouts can bar gays, Atheists, others," 3/24/98