On July 27, 2015, the national board of directors of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) voted to repeal its prohibition on gay Scout leaders. This follows the organization’s move two years ago to remove its ban on openly gay youth.
This vote provides an opportunity for Oak Park to heal some deep and lasting wounds and to unite around an organization that can provide tremendous value for our boys.
Back in the 1980s and early 1990s, just about every school in Oak Park had a Cub Scout pack and Boy Scout troop, typically sponsored (chartered) by the school’s PTO. That changed, though, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2000, Boy Scouts of America v. Dale, that the BSA’s Constitutional right to freedom of association gave the organization the authority to establish its own membership and leadership standards and to expel a gay assistant scoutmaster.
After the Dale decision, public opinion in Oak Park turned against the BSA. PTOs attempted to re-charter, attaching the village’s own anti-discrimination policy, but the BSA rejected the effort. In December 2000, the Chicago Tribune reported that Beye School “will no longer have a troop … after a local parents group said the organization’s ban on gays is in direct conflict with the school district’s anti-discrimination policies.” Similar situations existed where scouting had previously flourished.
The controversy tore at the fabric of our community. Many parents felt it was wrong for their boys to join an organization that discriminated. Many others felt it was wrong to abandon scouting, which, for almost a century, had offered a program teaching young men the values and knowledge needed to become leaders in their communities and country. We all did what we thought best for our children. In some groups, Oak Park’s participation in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts fell to 10% of its previous level.
This was very unfortunate for those families who could have benefitted greatly from involvement in scouting, (http://www.scouting.org/Parent/Benefits.aspx) and for our community, which continued to benefit from the remaining scouts, but on a much smaller scale, as every Cub Scout pack and Boy Scout troop performs multiple service projects yearly.
Now that the national Boy Scout organization has come around to Oak Park’s sensibilities, it’s time to heal the scars of the past and reinvigorate scouting, which helps instill the values of good conduct, respect for others, and honesty. Scouts learn skills that will last a lifetime, including basic outdoor skills, first aid, citizenship skills, leadership skills, and how to get along with others. We need our youth to learn these skills now more than ever.
A great way to get started in scouting is to join Cub Scouts. On Sept. 17, from 7-8 p.m., we’re asking all boys in grades 1-5 to go to their local school to check out The Pathway to Adventure Council’s inaugural “Blast Into Scouting” recruiting event. With their registration that evening they will be given a rocket to build. Then in the next two weeks, they will attend their first meeting with their local unit and will be given the engine for their rocket, as well as all pertinent information. To read more about the launch into scouting, visit http://www.blastintoscouting.org.
If your son is in sixth grade or older, he can join a Boy Scout troop. There are multiple troops in Oak Park. Ours, Troop 2, meets on Tuesday nights. Please see our website www.trwoop2oakpark.com for details about joining. Watch the media for additional recruiting dates from troops around the village.
Please encourage any boys you know to join. We hope Oak Park will give scouting another chance.
James Mahoney is scoutmaster and Helen Gilmore is committee chair of Boy Scout Troop 2 in Oak Park (www.troop2oakpark.com).
