LETTER: Group beliefs not a crime

Dear Editor,

In the recent debates regarding admission of homosexuals into the Boy Scouts of America, the issues have become very confused. The opponents of the BSA policy would have us believe the issue at hand is the discrimination against gays and lesbians. The biggest sticking point in the debate is the interpretation of the phrase “morally straight” in the scout oath. What, exactly, does it mean?

The anti-scouters would have us believe that “moral straightness” is the issue, that the BSA is discriminating against those who practice an alternative lifestyle. But who are they to say what “morally straight” means? As a private organization, the only group who has any right to say what the phrase includes or excludes is the BSA leadership.

Scouting has a strong tradition of faith and morality. Awards for religious service have long been part of the program. Opponents of BSA’s policy of refusing membership to openly gay individuals ignore this fact. They only look at the apparent contradiction between the Scouts’ policy of treating everyone equally and their restriction of gays.

But the examination of any moral- and faith-based organization finds the same thing. Churches advocate acceptance and tolerance of other faiths, but would be rightly outraged if an outside group came in and told them they could not believe immorality was wrong. No outside group has any right to tell another group what they can or cannot believe.

If there are those who disagree with BSA’s policy, they have every right to leave the program. The same is true of any organization – if you don’t like the rules you have every right to withdraw your membership. And if you violate their rules, they have every right to rescind your membership.

Opponents of BSA’s policies have done a wonderful job of disguising their attack on the rights of free association behind a facade of political correctness. But in truth, the Boy Scouts of America are merely exercising their right to decide for themselves what they believe. Those who believe differently are free to find or create their own organizations.

David Hart