Media roundup: UUs applaud Boy Scouts of America's step toward equality

Zach Wahls, a Unitarian Universalist, Eagle Scout, and leader of the group Scouts for Equality, was interviewed about the Boy Scouts of America’s (BSA) recent vote to allow gay and lesbian adults to lead scout troops (see video in sidebar). Wahls was pleased with the change but said that more work needs to be done to achieve true equality in scouting. (PBS Newshour - 7.28.15)

While many religious groups responded negatively to the BSA vote on gay scout leaders, the Unitarian Universalist Association applauded the change and sees it as an important opportunity for reestablishing right relations with the group. (The Washington Post - 7.28.15)

One scout leader from California summed up the disparate religious responses to the BSA vote this way: “It doesn’t mean the Mormons have to pick a gay scoutmaster, but please don’t tell the Unitarians they can’t.” (The Huffington Post - 7.27.15)

More coverage:

"Goodbye, Gay Ban: What the Boy Scouts Must Do Now" (Rolling Stone - 7.30.15)

Banner vandalism makes a statement

After careful consideration of what it means to say “Black Lives Matter” as a response to institutionalized racism, members of River Road Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Bethesda, Maryland, voted to place a banner with the phrase outside of their church. It was vandalized this week and the word “black” was cut out. The congregation plans to replace it soon. (The Washington Post - 7.29.15)

New England UUs lead religious environmentalism

Climate change activist Bill McKibben writes about New England roots of religious environmentalism. He notes that the Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence, Massachusetts, held the world’s first religious pilgrimage for climate justice and the Rev. Fred Small of First Parish in Cambridge, Massachusetts, helped persuade the entire UU denomination to divest from fossil fuels. (The Boston Globe - 7.26.15)