Incoming Boy Scouts president Robert Gates told 四虎影院 he doesn鈥檛 plan on pursuing an end to the group鈥檚 ban on gay adult leaders because it would be 鈥渄ivisive.鈥�
Gates, the former defense secretary, CIA director and Texas A&M president, spoke with 四虎影院 Friday afternoon before he delivered remarks in Nashville at the
In an interview, Gates said he supports the Scouts鈥� decision last year to end its ban on openly gay youth -- and would have supported an end to the ban on adults. He called the compromise "an important step forward."
Gates says he'll be focused on Scout youth during his two-year term as president of the Irving-based Boy Scouts.
鈥淚 supported moving forward and would have supported a decision to include gay Scout masters and adult volunteers in Scouting,鈥� Gates told 四虎影院. 鈥淕iven the passions and the strong views that exist on both sides of the issue, to try and pursue it while I am president would be very divisive to the movement and could permanently fracture it. 鈥� The key thing here is to keep the interest of the kids first. They鈥檙e the top priority.鈥�
Gates, 70, said he wants to implement the new youth policy in a way that 鈥減rovides a safe and secure environment for gay kids where they don鈥檛 have to worry about being disrespected or bullied.鈥�
Many welcomed the lifting of the gay youth ban, but the Southern Baptist Convention was among some groups that condemned the Boy Scouts. But gay advocates want gay adults to be able to openly serve as Scout leaders. Last fall, when Gates became the Scouts鈥� president-elect, GLAAD, a gay rights organization, called on him to 鈥減ut an end to discrimination once and for all鈥� and to
Gates told 四虎影院: "I respect the compromise that was made last year by a democratic vote of all the volunteers at the national meeting."
鈥業鈥檓 certainly not anti-gay鈥�
As defense secretary, Gates oversaw the repeal of the military鈥檚 controversial 鈥淒on鈥檛 Ask, Don鈥檛 Tell鈥� policy that banned gays and lesbians from serving openly.
鈥淚 opened the CIA to gays to serve openly as well,鈥� Gates told 四虎影院. 鈥淚t鈥檚 pretty clear that I鈥檓 certainly not anti-gay. 鈥� Part of it is the CIA and the Department of Defense -- when a boss gives an order, everyone salutes and more or less does what has been decided. The Boy Scouts is a volunteer organization and everyone is here because they want to be here. You have to listen to the people who comprise the movement and be sensitive to their views as well. You just can鈥檛 summarily order something done. I think it wouldn鈥檛 work even if I tried it.鈥�
Seeking to serve underserved communities
Gates, an Eagle Scout, said the Boy Scouts taught him leadership and management skills. As president, he plans to focus on continuing a Scouts鈥� initiative that emphasizes science, technology, engineering and mathematics. But he doesn鈥檛 want the group to abandon outdoors activities.
He also wants to turn around the group鈥檚 declining membership by working with leaders of minority groups and doing a better job of working with kids who might not typically join Scouts. The Boy Scouts has about 2.5 million youth members, a number that has declined in recent years.
鈥淲e have a huge opportunity 鈥� in underserved communities around the country, particularly disadvantaged kids and minority kids,鈥� Gates told 四虎影院. 鈥淚 see that as a huge potential area for us in terms of providing a Scouting program to kids who may need it most of all. And to open up a vista of things that could happen for them that they might never have thought of until they got into Scouting.鈥�
四虎影院 plans to air excerpts of the interview with Gates next week on 90.1 FM.
