US: Boy Scouts spokesperson says the BSA won’t repeal policy against gay adult leaders
A Boy Scouts of America leader has said that although the BSA does not believe gay men are predators or pedophiles, it will not reconsider it’s policy that bans gay men from being leaders.
In an interview with news site IndefinitelyWild, the BSA’s national commissioner Tico Perez was asked if the Boy Scouts consider gay adults predators or pedophiles.
Perez responded: “Let me be as clear as I can be on that topic: No, no, and no. This has never been an issue of predators or pedophilia.
We have studied every piece of data and every piece of information that the rest of the world has and there is no relationship between homosexuality and pedophilia. That is not the issue.”
When asked where the organisation is in shifting their anti-gay leader policy, Perez said: “Our newly elected president said it best: We’ve done what we are going to do on this issue for now. We need to now focus on retooling our movement and to grow.
“And I don’t think there’s any interest in addressing gay adult leadership at this time. And for a while. I think the movement has spoken on that issue.
“Our focus is the kids. We are not a political organisation. We serve young people.”
The organisation repealed a ban on openly gay youth joining the BSA in May 2013, which went into effect in January 2014.
