On January 1 of this yr , the Boy Scouts of America spread its doors to openly gay scouts . But , it still block off gay grownup leaders . We talked about this issue with the organisation ’s National Commissioner and expect him if Scouting considers gays pedophile .
IndefinitelyWild : Does the Boy Scouts consider gay grownup predators or paedophile ?
Tico Perez : allow 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 analyse every man of information and every art object of information that the rest of the world has and there is no human relationship between gayness and pedophilia . That is not the issue .
IW : How does Scouting stay relevant in a switch world ?
Tico : We ply a voice to the scouts , we have committees of leaders in relevant fields that secern us where untried people are , we have social media initiative we ’re setting up to start communicating more and more .
What ’s really interesting to me with the BSA is that it ’s really the same program it ’s always been . Our delivery method acting is a little unlike these days , but the nucleus is still there : theScout Oath and Law , character , leaders development , keep our young masses safe , work up relationships one kid at a time ; getting them out of doors , challenging them and permit them conk out .
We are in all likelihood the only establishment left that teaches young hoi polloi not only leadership and character development , but that this globe is a meritocracy and you ’ve obtain to earn what you get . Our uniform reflects that .
We ’ve certainly changed our delivery model — we ’re excited about STEM , we ’re excited about push to the edge , about high adventure in the outdoors , but the themes and the content of leading , graphic symbol , family , god ; those still remain just the same and they ’re going to continue to be relevant .
IW : Is it a requirement to have faith to be a Boy Scout ?
Tico : You have to acknowledge a graven image . You do not have to have a organized religion .
We have relationships with I mean 121 different religions and faith - based programs . Each organized religion has a spiritual reward where the vernal homo can research their faith , but it is not a requirement . There just has to be something more of import than you .
https://gizmodo.com/boy-scouts-made-me-the-man-i-am-today-heres-how-1607287395
IW : Is Scouting becoming more or less popular ?
Tico : Like every other organization that people link , well , we all live on our computers and our handhelds , our numbers racket have fallen over the last 10 years . Every other group is in the same boat , from churches to circular clubs and everyone else . But , we continue to fight the dear conflict , we still have about 2.5 million vernal people in America who every daylight declaim the swearword and law and over a million consecrate volunteers who contrive their lives around Scouting .
Our numbers have fallen , but we ’re investing a lot of clip and money into some neat , cutting edge high adventure programme , the new STEM initiative , giving our unseasoned people what they want and determine what they need and changing for them .
IW : What ’s STEM ?
Tico : We have severalScience , Technology , Engineering and Mathematicsinitiatives . We ’re in the process of rewrite and retool the Boy Scout Handbook to meditate that . We ’re key out a STEM requirement on fairly much every skill , like building a fire — the oestrus , the transfer of vigour and things of that nature . And have created Modern merit badge that are off the charts popular in robotics , gambling and even our Cub Scouts have play belt loops now where they can hear about package and data processor . We ’re come up to youthful people where they are , and then trying to drag them outside . We ’re trying to get them to sympathize that they can read about these things , or you’re able to go do these matter .
We ’re tailoring our untried someone delivery to those who are interested in STEM . I do n’t care what it train to get them into a kayak , I do n’t manage if we state them we ’re pass away to go analyse environmental waste , by god I just want them in a kayak .
IW : If child are develop up with the likeliness of working on a figurer , why are outdoors experience and skills still relevant ?
Tico : There is nothing like the out-of-doors to make your authority , to permit you understand relationships , to give you the opportunity to assay and fail and get up and test again . There ’s nothing like starting your own ardor , cooking your own meal , log Z’s in your own shelter and understanding that you are capable of these things .
One of the most significant things that our program driving is teamwork . So many young people just sit on a couch and think that Facebook friends are genuine friends , that do n’t understand that teamwork and relationships develop when you ferment together . That ’s what we teach them . And that will be necessary in their online future . The ability to pertain socially , to work with squad from diverse background , to interpret each other , that ’s all transferrable elsewhere and the outdoors is the best classroom to learn it . At least from my position .
To face at a mountain and be terrify , and then you make it to the top , it ’s life sentence changing . We take kids to have those experience . We ca n’t let kids experience in a practical domain . We ca n’t let kids dwell in a world where they continue to get ribbon and medals just for playing . They ’ve start out to accomplish , they ’ve got to pose goals , they ’ve got to zoom . And that ’s what we endeavor to give to them .
IW : How did the inclusion of openly homophile scouts come up about ?
Tico : The end goal for the movement is to do more boy . To give every male child in America the chance and blessing to be a Boy Scout . It made no sense to continue to deny that to our young the great unwashed . The finish of the Boy Scouts is to build man and cleaning lady of character , we need every fry in America to have that chance , to have the chance to go outside and mount a rock and overtake a fish and shoot a heavy weapon . All of those things are important for all our new mass to recognise .
The National Board decide it was time to launch the room access to all unseasoned citizenry and make certain everyone , everyone has the chance to become a scout .
IW : Where are we in moving towards countenance braw adult leaders ?
Tico : That ’s a totally dissimilar conversation . We have a very big and diverse country and we are concenter on serving young the great unwashed and giving young people access code to Scouting . We had a huge home dialog on the issue that was public and where the national board follow down — a voting membership , we talked to over two million people in this process and had over 1,500 voter — we resolve to allow our young people to have access to the motion and to not address the adult issue yet .
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025-03-02/gates-gay-adults-scouts/9529825/
Our newly elect President of the United States [ former CIA Director Robert Gates ] said it best : We ’ve done what we are going to do on this issue for now . We demand to now focus on retool our movement and to grow . And I do n’t think there ’s any interest in address cheery adult leadership at this meter . And for a while . I think the movement has spoken on that issue . Our focus is the kids , we are not a political organization , we answer young mass .
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