AGESCI will update its adult selection criteria to allow LGBTQ+ Scout leaders for the first time. Emotional orientation and gender identity will no longer be used as exclusion criteria during the discernment process for community leaders. AGESCI frames welcoming as central to its educational mission and calls for paths that help overcome homophobic, lesbophobic, and transphobic feelings and attitudes. The association states that such negative feelings hinder recognition, inclusion, and integration of male and female leaders at all levels. AGESCI has about 182,000 members and nearly 33,500 leaders, including around 2,000 priests. LGBTQ+ people could previously participate in activities but were barred from educational leadership roles, and the change follows consultation and debate beginning in 2022.
"AGESCI has reached the conclusion that... emotional orientation and gender identity cannot constitute exclusion criteria in the discernment that community leaders are called upon to exercise when an adult requests to join the association to play an educational role, the document said."
"It went on to say that the teaching of being welcoming at the heart of AGESCI means "it is essential to promote paths aimed at overcoming homophobic, lesbophobic and transphobic feelings and attitudes.""
"It continued: "Such feelings, in fact, constitute an obstacle to the recognition, inclusion, and integration of male and female leaders in our groups, and at all levels of the association.""
"LGBTQ+ people have been permitted to participate in AGESCI activities but were banned from serving in educational leadership roles. During the consultation period, which has been ongoing since 2022, the AGESCI collected testimonies from LGBTQ+ members to learn more about their experiences with exclusion and prejudice within the group's ranks."
Read at PinkNews | Latest lesbian, gay, bi and trans news | LGBTQ+ news
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]