Action Alert

March 12, 2005

For Immediate Release and Distribution
Scouting for All

Contact

Scott Cozza, Pres.
Scouting for All
cozzahived@aol.com
S4A National Office
Tel: 707-778-0564
http://www.scoutingforall.org/

Brian Westley, Asst. Dir., Midwest Region
Scouting For All
westley@visi.com

Senators Frist (R-TN) and Alexander (R-TN) to introduce "Support Our Scouts Act"

US Senators Bill Frist (R-TN) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) are planning to introduce legislation that would ensure that the Boy Scouts are "treated fairly by guaranteeing their right to equal access to public facilities,
forums, and programs"

This sudden burst of Boy Scout support comes, as usual, on the heels of the Boy Scouts losing SPECIAL access, and being treated like any other private, discriminatory organization.

Just a few months ago, the military agreed to stop sponsoring hundreds of Boy Scout Packs and Troops because the US government can't sponsor youth groups that practice religious discrimination; now, the Boy Scouts have announced that other government agencies like public schools and police departments will no longer sponsor thousands of discriminatory Packs and Troops.

Some politicians, of course, think it's outrageous that government agencies have to follow the constitution and refrain from discriminating against gay and atheist kids; during the years the Boy Scouts were battling in court to exclude gays and atheists as a "private, discriminatory club", they saw no hypocrisy in having thousands of public schools sponsoring such clubs. Indeed, just before the Dale decision, public schools sponsored more Packs and Troops than ANYONE. They still sponsor over 25% of all Cub Scout Packs in Texas, home of the Boy Scouts' National headquarters.

Scouting For All is opposed to the proposed Frist/Alexander bill, which purportedly prohibits all Federal agencies from ever providing LESS support to the Boy Scouts than the agency every has.

This would, for example, require the military to re-sponsor Boy Scout Packs and Troops, in violation of the constitution and Federal laws.

The bill also describes lawsuits against illicit government support of discriminatory Boy Scout programs as "senseless attacks" on the Boy Scouts -- when, ironically, these lawsuits only seek that ALL youth, gay or straight, atheist or theist, are treated EQUALLY by government agencies, instead of directing public tax money towards a "private, discriminatory" club.

Scouting for All is asking all members and supporters to write a letter to their Senators, letting them know that as long as the Boy Scouts continues to discriminate, the government has no right to support them.

There is no room in American Society for an official sanction of a discriminatory organization.

You can find contact information for your Senators at http://www.senate.gov/ To send an email to your Senator, go to: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

You can also write to:

Frist, Bill - (R - TN)
509 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-3344
Web Form:
frist.senate.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutSenatorFrist.ContactForm

Alexander, Lamar - (R - TN)
302 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-4944
Web Form:
alexander.senate.gov/contact.cfm