Boy Scouts kick out openly gay leader because they didn't realize he was gay

The Boy Scouts of America fired an openly gay Scoutmaster because he "deliberately injected" his sexuality into the organization. On Monday, the group booted 49-year-old Geoff McGrath because he was a "distraction to Scouting." He is believed to be the first adult to be released since May's vote that allowed gay youth, but not gay adults, to be members.

The organization has fired gay scout members before, but McGrath told NBC News that he had hoped things would change with the new rules. "It's extremely disappointing to not be fully supported and defended in my membership," he said. "They are complaining that the problem [his status as an openly gay man] is a distraction to Scouting, and they don't seem to understand that the distraction is self-inflicted."

Even though McGrath won approval to lead a troop last year, the BSA claims it didn't know he was gay until NBC News approached the organization to do a profile about him. That was the moment he apparently "deliberately injected [his sexuality] into Scouting in an inappropriate fashion," said a spokesperson, who alleged that he wanted to use the program "as a means to further a personal agenda."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

McGrath said he thinks "cooler minds" will eventually prevail.