Remarks Given at Equal Scouting Summit by Zach Wahls

Good afternoon everybody. At last year’s annual meeting of the Boy Scouts of America, I delivered nearly 300,000 petition signatures asking the Boy Scouts to end their ban on gay members. One year later, the BSA is on the verge of taking the first step forward and lifting their ban on gay youth in the program. Speaking as a straight, lifelong Scout, I’m thrilled to know that Scouting will soon, we pray, be open to all young men who will live by the Scout Oath and Law.

A lot has happened in the interim. Last July, the Boy Scouts doubled down on their ban, and said it was the best policy for the organization. Since that time, Scouts for Equality has worked with incredible petition starters to gather more than 1.8 million petition signatures on Change.org. Working with our partners like the Inclusive Scouting Network, GLAAD, HRC, and others, we’ve been able to keep the pressure on the Boy Scouts, so they know how important this issue is to the nation and to the future of Scouting. Our incredible grassroots volunteers organized in nearly 150 of the BSA’s 282 councils and had thousands upon thousands of conversations that were Scout to Scout, parent to parent and leader to leader.

And ultimately, that’s what this entire conversation is about: leadership. We understand that for many of the voting members, this is a deeply personal decision and frankly, I respect the difficulty facing some of these electors. But in a final analysis, the facts are clear:

According to ABC News polling, a strong majority of Americans support ending the ban on gay Scouts and including a vast majority of people under the age of forty and even a plurality of self-identified conservatives.

Further, according to the BSA’s own internal research a majority of Scouting parents under the age of fifty support ending the ban on gay Scouts, and the vast majority of currently active Scouts support ending the ban.

It is clear that if Scouting is not willing to move forward on this issue, it will be left behind by an America that supports our LGBT friends, neighbors, family members and even our fellow Scouts who made it through the program. America needs the values that Scouting has to offer now more than ever, and we cannot afford to lose this great cultural icon.

Finally, at the end of the day, this entire conversation comes down to one of the core values of leadership that is so often discussed but so difficult to actually execute: treating others the way we want to be treated. There is nothing Scout-like about exclusion of other people, and there is nothing Scout-like about putting your own religious beliefs before someone else’s.

President Reagan once reminded us of the Shining City on the Hill—a testament to that last great bastion of hope and freedom. There should be no doubt that for decades, the Boy Scouts of America has contributed to that radiance, but with the continued exclusion of LGBT Americans like my parents, Jackie and Terry, and young men who happen to be gay, the BSA darkens the light of those who would gladly serve their communities and country.

Tomorrow’s vote gives the BSA an opportunity to light a new path forward into the twenty-first century. We hope to see them on the other side.

For more information visit www.scoutsforequality.com.