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Boy Scouts Of America Scraps Ban On Gay Leaders

Boy Scouts Of America Scraps Ban On Gay Leaders

A blanket ban on gay adult leaders of the Boy Scouts Of America has been lifted by the organisation's governing body.

It brings to an end a policy that has deeply divided the membership of the 105-year-old youth organisation.

"For far too long this issue has divided and distracted us," said Robert Gates, the BSA's president.

"Now it's time to unite behind our shared belief in the extraordinary power of Scouting to be a force for good."

The new policy - effective immediately - means those wanting a staff job can no longer be denied a position on the basis of sexual orientation.

It also means those previously removed from the organisation because of the ban would now be able to reapply for volunteer positions.

Mr Gates, the former US defence chief, insisted the ban was no longer sustainable, saying the BSA was likely to be the targets of lawsuits that it would probably lose.

The Mormon church, which sponsors more Scout units that any other organisation, said it was "deeply troubled" by the decision.

"The admission of openly gay leaders is inconsistent with the doctrines of the Church and what have traditionally been the values of the Boy Scouts of America," said a statement from the church's headquarters in Salt Lake City.

Church officials hinted they would look into the possibility of organising their own youth group.

The BSA's top leaders have pledged to defend the right of any church-sponsored units to continue excluding gays as adult volunteers.

However, the Human Rights Campaign, a national LGBT-rights organisation, said the Boy Scouts should not allow church-sponsored units to continue excluding gays.

"Discrimination should have no place in the Boy Scouts, period," said the HRC's president, Chad Griffin.

"BSA officials should now demonstrate true leadership and begin the process of considering a full national policy of inclusion."

Reverend Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics And Religious Liberty Commission, said: "It's hard for me to believe, in the long term, that the Boy Scouts will allow religious groups to have the freedom to choose their own leaders."

"In recent years I have seen a definite cooling on the part of Baptist churches toward the Scouts.

"This will probably bring that cooling to a freeze."

Like several other major youth organisations, the BSA has seen a decline in membership in recent decades.

Some conservatives split from the group following the decision in 2013 to admit gay youth.

The BSA's current membership is about 2.4 million boys and one million adults.