WidGet International’s Policy on the Boy Scouts of America

Widget International’s Policy on the Boy Scouts of America

Widget International is currently taking into consideration their policy regarding the matter of charitable contributions to the Boy Scouts of America; an organization that openly discriminates against homosexuals. The current policy at Widget International is to refrain from contributing to the Boy Scouts of America because their public discrimination against homosexuals conflicts with the company’s policy on antidiscrimination. Today, Widget International is faced with making a conclusive decision on this matter and decide, once and for all, if they should eliminate any ties with the Boy Scouts. If Widget International decides to support the Boy Scouts, it will express an image to the public that the company supports or accepts the discrimination policy put forth by the Scouts. Widget International should not alter their current policy on charitable contributions to the Boy Scouts of America until the Scouts change their current values and views about the homosexual community.

The Boy Scouts of America was founded in 1910 as an establishment that was created to develop the skills and maturity of the youth. The Boy Scouts of America openly discriminates against homosexuality, and any individual who declares him or herself as homosexual is excluded from participation in the Boy Scouts. According to the dictionary, homosexuality is a sexual desire or behavior directed to a person or persons of one’s own sex. Also, many experts believe that homosexuality is not a choice, but an orientation that one discovers in one’s self. This makes it unfair for the Boy Scouts to discriminate against something which an individual has no control over. In 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court favored the policy of the Boy Scouts of America when they refused to allow a Scout master to join because he was openly homosexual. The Supreme Court’s rationale was that under the First Amendment, the Boy Scouts have the right as a private association to not affiliate with homosexuals. One case that should also be noted is the case of the two mothers in Vermont. The mothers were refused the right to become a scout master for their son because of their sexual orientation. The Boy Scouts tried to explain that they did not support mothers as scout leaders regardless of their orientation and that was why they refused the mothers their right to volunteer. The issue with this statement from the Scouts is that the moms had previously volunteered before without their sexual orientation known and had no conflict in working with the Scouts (Jones). Also, cities such as Philadelphia, try to remove subsidies given to the Boy Scouts to rent government land. The Scouts are allowed to lease a government building for a dollar a year and the city wants to reconstruct this policy. According to a city council member, “you cannot be in a city-owned facility being subsidized by