Governor Rick Perry: ‘I think the Boy Scouts should keep its anti-gay policy’
Texas Governor Rick Perry has said that he thinks the Boy Scouts of America shouldn’t remove its ban on openly gay scouts, volunteers and staff.
The Republican Governor was speaking to an annual gathering of scouts from around Texas on Saturday, and when asked about the policy he said he thought it didn’t need to be changed.
He said: “I think most people see absolutely no reason to change [the policy].”
NBC News reported on Monday that BSA national leaders are “actively considering an end to its decades-long policy of banning gay Scouts or Scout leaders.”
In Governor Perry’s 2008 book, On My Honor, he discusses his love for the Scouts, and says that it should continue to embrace conservative values.
The BSA has come under pressure from religious organisations which have put pressure on it not to change its policy.
This week, one US radio host said the scouts should “shut down” rather than allow gays in, and that these are signs of the “end times”, and another said that allowing gay scout masters would allow “gay activists” to “spread deviant sexuality”.
The Boy Scouts have, however, lost funding from several large corporate donors over the policy, including UPS, back in November, who had given over $150,000 (£95,000), Intel, another of the scouts’ largest donors, ceased funding back in September, and the Merck Foundation in December.
He had previously thought that the the national Boy Scouts of America organisation would approve his application because he had completed all of the requirements, and received a recommendation for approval from a review board at his local council, and had a 460,000 strong petition in his favour.
After appearing as a guest on the Ellen Degeneres Show, the 18-year-old Boy Scout was awarded a $20,000 (£12,476) scholarship towards his college fees. Mr Andresen was also recognised by Assembly Speaker, John Perez, who is openly gay himself, at the California state Assembly