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Cub Scout den will quit affiliation Intolerance of gays blamed From staff and wire reports ASHLAND -- A local Cub Scout den will pull out of the national Boy Scouts of America because of the organization's efforts to bar homosexuals from leadership positions. Ashland Cub Scout Den 2 of Pack 320 will not renew its membership with the Boy Scouts of America this year, its leaders announced. "Our den has decided to discontinue our affiliation with the Boy Scouts of America because of their intolerance of diversity," wrote the den's co-leaders Serena Ota St. Clair and Sally Kirkpatrick in an October letter to the Crater Lake Council of Boy Scouts of America, the regional group based in Central Point. But Ed Weiseth, executive director of the Crater Lake Council, said he hasn't received any letter. He took the news in stride. "It's kind of people's free choice whether to be in the Boy Scouts or not," said Weiseth, adding that they've never had a troop withdraw before. "Nobody asked them to leave. If people aren't comfortable with our value system, they just don't join in the first place. "We're just talking about a couple of lady leaders." The Crater Lake Council serves 2,000 youngsters in 100 different Scouting units in Jackson County, but its territory extends from Northern California to Central Oregon. Weiseth said there has been no discussion locally of the national organization's long-standing ban on homosexuals. "This is just old news being rehashed," he said. "It's been the policy of the Boy Scouts since 1910." In August, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that the private organization falls under the state's anti-discrimination law because it is a "place of public accommodation." Lawyers for the national group vowed to appeal the issue to the U.S. Supreme Court, which in a past decision refused to review another state's ruling that upheld the Boy Scout ban. The Ashland den started two years ago and the nine members had moved through their Wolf and Bear badges. The boys have fed homeless individuals and families, raised money for low-income kids, planted trees and done volunteer yard work. "This is all wonderful and worthwhile stuff, but when we matched it with our host organization, who is essentially trying to legalize a form of discrimination, we decided to act with integrity and leave the Boy Scouts of America behind," St. Clair and Kirkpatrick said. The seeds of the den's withdrawal may have begun at the town's Fourth of July Parade last year, when the boys' entry was placed behind the entry of the Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG). "Being right by the PFLAG entry, I suddenly realized that I was uncomfortable being part of the Boy Scouts, which were then starting to be seen as discriminating against homosexuals," St. Clair said. At their organizational meeting in the fall, den leaders unanimously decided not to renew its Scout membership. "I think it's stupid because it (homosexuality) doesn't make any difference," said former Cub Scout den member Aidan St. Clair-Bate, St. Clair's fourth-grade son. Nationally, the Boy Scouts organization was philosophical about the Ashland den's withdrawal. "It's very important to understand that the Boy Scouts is an entirely volunteer organization," said Boy Scouts of America national spokesman Gregg Shields in a telephone interview from Dallas. "If individuals choose not to participate we respect that." Shields added, "Since 1910 the Boy Scouts have taught basic traditional family values.... We feel that an avowed homosexual does not fit these values and is not an appropriate person to be in a leadership position." The den's co-leaders said that the boys will form a new club, tentatively called Community Kids Club, which will continue to give them opportunities for community service, earth stewardship, and adventure. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA