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Tag: gay ban

  • Gay Scout Leader: Fired For Views or Sexuality?

    The Boy Scouts of America have fired Geoff McGrath, the scoutmaster of Seattle’s Troop 98. What’s unique about this incident is that it is believed that McGrath was the only openly gay scoutmaster in America.

    The organization as a rule does not condone openly gay scoutmasters. They’ve only recently allowed gay youths to be scouts.

    The alleged reason for McGrath’s firing is that he was “deliberately injecting” his sexuality into the job.

    Said spokesman Deron Smith, “Our policy is that we do not ask people about their sexual orientation.”

    McGrath was let go shortly after NBC News contacted the Boy Scouts of America after his interview. The organization claims they had no idea that McGrath was an openly gay male prior to being contacted for a statement.

    The 49-year-old told King 5 News this isn’t true. He claimed the Boy Scouts, “were fully aware” of his “prior activism.”

    The Boy Scouts of America says they were concerned that the interview with the openly gay scoutmaster would somehow serve a “personal agenda” that violated their policies.

    McGrath said that he’s “extremely disappointed” that he was let go.

    “They are complaining that [homosexuality] is a distraction to Scouting and they don’t seem to understand that the distraction is self-inflicted.”

    The situation represents a two-edged sword, particularly for non-heterosexual members.

    It seems that attempting to participate as a Boy Scout while being gay is asking to be ostracized. You mustn’t tell anyone you’re gay as admission alone disagrees with the values of their establishment.

    The problem arises as there seems to be no consideration as to the message this sends to young gay scouts who may be talented and dedicated are left feeling unwanted.

    The aggressive stance of the Boy Scouts towards openly gay males is especially controversial given the organization has come under heavy fire for their failure to act on nearly a century’s worth of child sexual abuse allegations.

    Leaving some to wonder…exactly who are they trying to protect and from what?

    Image via YouTube

  • Lobbyist Wants Gay Players Banned from NFL

    Former Missouri player Michael Sam (above) knew to expect a certain amount of resistance after announcing that he is gay, which will make him the first openly gay player in the NFL after he is drafted, but he probably didn’t expect the latest twist–a Washington lobbyist is pushing for legislation that would ban gay players from the NFL. Jack Burkman announced on Monday that he is preparing legislation for a ban of gay players in the NFL because he believes allowing them to participate would reflect poorly on the United States.

    ”We are losing our decency as a nation,” said Burkman. “Imagine your son being forced to shower with a gay man. That’s a horrifying prospect for every mom in the country. What in the world has this nation come to?”

    Not surprisingly, the news that a Washington lobbyist is pushing for a gay player ban didn’t sit well with a lot of people. Check out some comments made to Burkman after he posted his comments about moms being scared to think about their sons in the locker room with a gay guy.

    NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced that he is supporting Sam’s decision to come out and says that the league won’t discriminate based on sexual orientation. Apparently this statement by Goodell didn’t sit well with the Republican lobbyist, since this is part of the reason Burkman is pushing Congress to intervene.

    “I felt that if the NFL doesn’t have any morals, and people like Roger Goodell, who are just go-along-get-along guys, just want to appease advertisers, appease corporate America and all that stuff. I figured, well, it is time for conservatives in Congress to step in and define morality for them,” Burkman said.

    Even though Burkman’s announcement that he is pushing for a ban of gay players in the NFL was met with outrage by many people, Michael Sam doesn’t seem too bothered by it:

    Burkman’s firm lost its first client since he made his comments about a gay player ban. DC Solar executives Jeffery Carpoff and Paulette Carpoff told TIME that they don’t want their company to be associated with someone who has homophobic views.

    “DC Solar does not condone or support Mr. Burkman’s homophobic views, and since learning about his misguided efforts to write legislation banning gay athletes from the NFL, we have ended our relationship with him,” said the Carpoffs.

    “DC Solar values diversity within our company and within out communities, and we do not tolerate discrimination of any sort. As a company working to address issues about our country’s future, we have no intention of working with those stuck in the past.”

    Image via YouTube