Should the Boyscouts continue to keep children from nonreligious homes from being members?

Question

If yes, then should they be allowed to advertise for members and/or hold meetings in schools?

They require a religious oath and several children have been expelled for being uncomfortable with taking it. They also discriminate based on sexual orientation. They also receive funding and often are allowed to use public schools without reimbursement, something openly religiously affiliate organizations are not allowed to do. I am sad about this as I think there are many good things children get from such a club. I hope to see more similar more inclusive organization arise.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/bsa.htm

http://www.bsa-discrimination.org/

Answer 1

That is discrimination and if they do, then I think the ideals behind the Boy Scouts would be severly compromised. It isn't right to prevent a child from participating in something as wonderful as Boy Scouts because of their religious background!

Answer 2

I did not know that children from nonreligious homes could not become boy scouts. Is it because of the pledge?

I had not heard anything about this, but if it is true that they are excluding children, then, yes there should be some restrictions on them.

As far as holding the meetings in schools, I know that where I live, they pay a nominal fee to hold the meetings in rooms that would otherwise be empty. So, after school hours, they should be allowed to hold meetings.

As far as advertising in schools, I am not sure about that. I know they advertise for musical groups, organizations, etc. in schools and not all children are accepted. Only the children with actual talent are accepted.

Little League baseball has a "pledge" which mentions God. I have a 9 year old relative (little girl) who just stood with the other children and stopped talking when God was mentioned. No one told her to do this; this was her choice, she told me about it afterward. She seemed to find the way acceptable to her to handle this.

BTW, I am a Christian, but I am trying to look at it from both sides.

Answer 3

My son is in Cubscouts, now maybe the rules change when they go into Boyscouts, but at the moment religion doesn't matter. I claim to be a part of no religion and have not hidden the fact either and yet my son is still a part and no one has commented on it. I"ve never known boyscouts to be a religious organization.

Answer 4

The Boy Scouts are a PRIVATE organization. As such, they have every right to refuse anyone they want.

Many PRIVATE organizations advertise for members at public places. Why pick on the BSA?

Answer 5

They don't.

What kind of home the kids are from makes no difference.

Boy Scouts do have respect for all people and all faiths.

Boy Scouts is a really great program, and is under attack by the Civil Libertarians. We will be a worse country without Scouting.

But preserving the nation is never an priority with them.

Peace!

Answer 6

Yes, Belief in and service to God is part of the tradition of scouting, when you turn away from God you miss out on things.

Yes they should be allowed to use the schools for meetings and recruiting members. I don't see how the issues are related

Answer 7

Any organization that receives government support should not be allowed to discriminate based on religion.

If Boy Scouts want to promote religion, they should get their support exclusively from churches or individual donations.

Answer 8

Boyscouts deny membership to children based on their religious background? If true, this is horrible.

Answer 9

Sure, they just shouldn't pretend to be a secular organization.

Lots of non-secular groups meet in schools, its a great way for schools to generate revenue.

Answer 10

More knee jerk answers. Sigh.

Boy Scouts have been sued and sued and sued. By both those who think they must change their views on religion, and their views on homosexuals as leaders. Let me shout this to the world:

THEY HAVE WON EVERY SUIT. GROW UP!

In the area of religion, actually atheist kids can go to Scouts. THEY CANNOT BECOME AN EAGLE SCOUT.

Boy Scouts was formed with the basis of God and Country, around 1908 in England by Lord Baden-Powell, a hero of the Boer War. That is the basis of the entire organization. Without God and Country, there would be no Scouts left.

There is a solution for you religion haters. START YOUR OWN SCOUTING PROGRAM, LET THE WORLD KNOW YOU ARE ATHEISTS AND THE MEMBERS WILL FLOOD IN. RIGHT???

Har, har.

People send their boys to Scouts because they want that environment for them.

In the 80's the big lawsuit on religion was won. But, as leaders, we received training on the rules that came from the backlash of the lawsuit. We were told to be an Eagle, the kid had to believe in a divine creator, but we couldn't decide which one. Jewish; Muslim; Christian; any divine creator would do if the boy seriously believed in it.

We were even told if a boy honestly and seriously believed the biggest frog in the pond behind his house was the Divine Creator we had to accept it. Sure, we could spend some time making sure he was sincere, but if he was we had to accept it.

The only exclusion is a person who is totally atheist. So, why is an atheist trying to get into an organization he well knows is intended for theists? Ah, I have it, He is a trouble-maker who wishes to force his own religious beliefs onto others.

Next, gays. This was also a major lawsuit. Gays could have started their own program, but like all others who try to force their way into existing organizations whose beliefs they don't accept, they want to take over an existing strong organization, keep all the workers and all the money, but sit on their lazy butts and tell the workers what to do under the new program. This is also true when women force their way into all-male organizations. (To set the record straight, there are all sorts of all-women organizations in the US. They are as discriminatory as all-male organizations,but note that the feminists who seem so dedicated to eliminating discrimination don't mind them.)

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled the Boy Scouts could indeed refuse to let the homosexuals recruit among their boys.

A gay can be a Scout leader. As long as he keeps his mouth shut, and doesn't come to meetings with his dildo t-shirt on, and doesn't tell anyone about his sexual preference, no one is going to know. Scouts have rules to mandate multipile adult leaders at all times, so there is some protection against predators.

What gays wanted, in spite of their lies, was to recruit new gays. The troops are run by the parents of boys, and they do not want gays talking about their lifestyle to their boys, and they definitely don't want gays hugging and kissing on outings. I have seen heterosexual adults pushed gently but firmly out of a troop for making standard male comments about attractive women in front of the boys, so speaking about heterosexual behavior is also discouraged.

(The first predators were found in Boy Scouts around 1910 by Lord Baden-Powell at his island meeting place.)

Same deal here. If the gays want a Scout program, they can do that and wait for the parents to send their boys.

If you jerks get Boy Scouts tossed out of all the schools in the country, it will go on. It is a great program; it has been a great program for nearly a century, and under pressure, like churches in atheist Russia, they get stronger. They will meet in homes; they already own their own campgrounds. If you tax them, they will donate more money.

I suggest you stop trying to destroy the finest part of our society in every way.

This is the sort of crap historians talk about when they say societies rot from within. Dummies work and work to destroy every sign of morality and faith and conscience until there is no society left of value, and then the Huns come in. In our case, when we have nothing of value left to fight for, it will be the Muslims who come in and our women will be wearing veils.

Good job!