New York state's Boy Scout affiliate has raised a big middle finger to their bigoted parent organization, having defied its homophobic mandate and hired an openly gay man to work as an Eagle Scout camp counsellor upstate this summer.
18-year-old Pascal Tessier grew up in Maryland and is currently a college student in Ohio. The chapter released the following statement regarding his employment:
The Greater New York Councils of the Boy Scouts of America has hired an 18-year-old Eagle Scout who is openly gay to serve as a leader in its summer camps during the summer of 2015. GNYC has a long-standing policy of non-discrimination and supports the rights of gay adults to work for the Boy Scouts. We believe that this young man, who achieved his Eagle Scout designation in 2014, is an exemplary candidate for employment as a camp leader. We welcome him and look forward to his participation in our camp program.
We do not want our policy of non-discrimination to be affected by the national policy. New York City and New York State law clearly prohibit employers from excluding qualified men and women from employment based on sexual orientation.
GNYC provides programs and services for more than 46,600 young people in New York City. The mission of the GNYC is to help all children in the five boroughs of New York City. Prejudice, intolerance and discrimination are unacceptable within the ranks of the GNYC.
Boy Scouts' national spokesman issued a statement to the Times clarifying that the national policy, which bans openly gay men from working as scout leaders, remains in place, adding that the matter of Tessier was being looked into.
Zach Wahls, executive director of Scouts for Equality, said that while around 30 other councils across the country have verbally opposed the ban on gay scout leaders, New York is the first to actually hire a gay leader.
“A lot of councils have talked the talk," he told the paper. "Now the New York Councils is walking the walk.”
