Be careful what you ask for

Be careful what you ask for. That's a lesson the Boy Scouts of America are gradually learning.

For years, the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) have openly discriminated against gay scout masters, as well as gay scouts. Basically, if you are gay, there is no place for you in the scouts. Many scouts have sued in recent years, unsuccessfully.

In 2000, James Dale (BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA AND MONMOUTH COUNCIL, et al., PETITIONERS v. JAMES DALE) lost his fight before the Supreme Court to stay in the Boy Scouts. It was a sad day for many in the gay community. The high court ruled, that because BSA was a private organization, they are free to discriminate against who they wish.

Over time, various organizations, such as various chapters of United Way, have decided to stop listing BSA on their pamphlets of groups you could contribute to. To be able to donate to BSA through the United Way, you would have to write in BSA. In some cases, the United Way made it policy that they would not contribute at all to BSA because of the policy.

The Supreme Court refused Monday to hear an appeal from the Boy Scouts over what the organization claims is discrimination because of its policy against hiring gays.

The case revisited the gay rights fight surrounding the high court's ruling four years ago that the Boy Scouts have the right to ban openly homosexual scout leaders. This time, the question was whether states may treat the Scouts differently than other organizations because of that policy.

The Scouts asked the justices to hear a case from Connecticut, where officials dropped the group from a list of charities that receive donations through a state employee payroll deduction plan. (story)

Here in Connecticut, a state human rights commission had found that including the Boy Scouts of America in the employee donation program would violate Connecticut's gay rights law, state Connecticut attorney General Richard Blumenthal argued to the high court. The gay rights law prohibits the state from "becoming a party to any agreement, arrangement or plan which has the effect of sanctioning discrimination," the state's legal filing said.

So now the equation is balanced. All sides are equal, and who won? The answer, no one.

Gay scouts and gay scoutmasters still can not serve in the Boy Scouts of America.

The Boy Scouts of America have had what they wanted since 2000, the exclusion of gays from the Boy Scouts. They just don't want to pay the price for it. So, they lost as well. I hope that it was worth it to them.

Be careful what you ask for. You may just get it.

Background Information: Boy Scouts Access Issue Is Back Before Supreme Court