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Poll: Majority support admitting gay Boy Scouts
A majority of Americans believe Boy Scouts of America (BSA) should change policy and admit openly gay scouts and leaders, according to a survey released Wednesday.
The poll from Quinnipiac University showed that 55 percent of respondents believe the scouting organization should drop the ban on gay members, while a third of those surveyed said it should remain.
On Wednesday, the group's national board said it would delay making a decision on the policy, pushing the vote to a national meeting in May. Some scout groups' local councils had asked the BSA national board to delay the decision in recent days, saying the implications demanded a more extensive review.
“My attitude is that gays and lesbians should have access and opportunity the same way everybody else does in every institution and walk of life,” Obama said in a CBS News interview. “The Scouts are a great institution that are promoting young people and exposing them to opportunities and leadership that will serve people for the rest of their lives.”
The poll found significant division along gender and religious lines. While more than six in 10 women surveyed back allowing gay scouts, only 49 percent of men do so. While 63 percent of Catholics support removing the ban, only 44 percent of Protestants do so.
Still, the only group where a plurality of those surveyed did not support removing the ban was evangelical Protestants. Among that group, 56 percent opposed lifting the ban, while a third supported it.
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