Other Youth Groups Recognize Gays

by Patrick Boyle

How can they do that, when the Boy Scouts can't seem to?

One answer is cookies. The Girl Scouts sell more than three million cookies a year, according to the Washington Post, bringing in more than $10Êmillion. Revenue from the sale of Girl Scout cookies accounts for about half the funding for Girl Scout units, says Carol McMillan, national director of council services. About 20 percent comes from donations by organizations such as the United Way and by individuals. The rest is a mix of fees paid by the girls (to attend camp, for instance), proceeds from the sale of items such as uniforms, and investments.

Few Girl Scout units have one direct sponsor, as in the Boy Scouts, McMillan says. The 318 Scout councils are what keep the troops going. "It is really at a minimum level in terms of any authority the sponsoring organization has," she says. If a sponsor pulls out because it disagrees with a Girl Scouts policy, it's no big deal; the council continues supporting the unit, which finds another place to meet.

When it comes to choosing leaders, "we don't discriminate against anyone," says Girl Scouts spokeswoman Lori Arguelees. Homosexuality "is a non-issue." The difference between the organizations is ironic because Juliet Low, the well-to-do Savannah widow who founded the Girl Scouts in 1912, was a friend of Robert Baden-Powell's and set out to create a female version of his movement. "Both groups are sort of the children of Robert Baden-Powell," writes Mary Rothschild, a history professor at Arizona State University who is writing a history of the Girl Scouts.

How about the YMCA, which is Christian-based and served as a midwife for the fledgling BSA? It has no policy on gays as volunteers or employees. Its youth workers must demonstrate four core values: caring, honesty, respect, and responsibility. "Those values are seen in all people, no matter what their orientation," says Dan Maier, director of association advancement.

The YMCA issues charters to local boards that run the clubs. Those boards usually consist of community members, including business leaders and church leaders, but they do not come from one organization, such as a local church or school, as they do in the BSA.

Over at Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, the volunteer background checks for the youth field include inquiries about sexual orientation, says president Judy Vrendenburgh. But gays are not excluded. Parents have final word on youth/adult matches, she says, and gays have served as Big Brothers and Big Sisters.

How about the Boys & Girls Clubs of America? "It is really a non-issue for us," says spokeswoman Jan Lindenman. Most of the B&GC "club houses" are in "independent structures," such as club-owned buildings. A few are in churches, but the clubs do not have sponsors, and "we are not religious in our orientation," Lindenman says.

How about Campfire Boys and Girls? Last month it issued a statement to its councils saying that it "works to realize the dignity and worth of each individual and to eliminate human barriers based on all assumptions which prejudge individuals." Although it does not ban gays, the organization supports the right of the Boy Scouts "to determine their core values."