The Boy Scouts of America decided on Tuesday, after a two-year confidential review, to adherently reaffirm its policy to exclude gays, ruling out any changes despite vigorous protest campaigns by some critics. The organization’s national spokesman, Deron Smith, told The Associated Press than an 11-member special committee, formed by top Scout leaders in 2010, “came to the conclusion that this policy is absolutely the best policy for the Boy Scouts.”
Bob Mazzuca, the Scout’s chief executive, asserted that most Scout families support the long-standing policy, which was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2000 and has since remained controversial. The Scout’s committee, comprised of professional scout executives and adult volunteers, was unanimous in its conclusion. “The vast majority of the parents of youth we serve value their right to address issues of same-sex orientation within their family, with spiritual advisers and at the appropriate time and in the right setting,” Mazzuca said. “We fully understand that no single policy will accommodate the many diverse views among our membership or society.”
