Secular Coalition for America and Scouting for All Protest Discriminaton
May 24, 2006 - Scouting for All organized a protest at the hotel hosting a national Boy Scouts of America (BSA) meeting in Washington, D.C. The rally promoted social justice by demanding an end to the discrimination by the Boy Scouts against atheist and gay youth and adults.
Below is the statement made by Lori Lipman Brown, Director of the Secular Coalition for America, at the rally, and photos from the event.
In 1998, the California Supreme Court ruled against the Randall twins who were expelled from the BSA for not swearing a religious oath. The case was based on the BSA's right to ignore anti-discrimination laws because of its status as a private membership organization. Having made that choice to engage in such discrimination, the BSA should not seek nor accept government funding. And our government should not allocate its funds to an organization which engages in such discrimination. Although the BSA is a private organization which may legally discriminate, our government is not.
More devastating than the unconstitutional nature of Congressional support for this discriminating group, are the psychological effects of telling some children they are not adequate.
My organization hears from parents whose children have been harassed and ostracized for not believing in God; from others whose child's dream of playing on the football team becomes a nightmare when the coach announces that only evil children don't attend church. The most common put-down in our nation's schools is "you're gay." The Boy Scouts of America serves as an extension of the pervasive attack on atheist and gay children. This is not a group deserving of the support of Congress or the President of the United States.
The Secular Coalition for America proudly joins Scouting for All in calling on Congress and the President to stop aiding discrimination.
