Wed. March 6, 2013
Singer Carly Rae Jepsen on Tuesday announced she would not perform at the Boy Scouts of America's (BSA) National Scout Jamboree.
In a series of tweets, she said: "As an artist who believes in equality for all people, I will not be participating in the Boy Scouts of America Jamboree this summer. I always have and will continue to support the LGBT community on a global level and stay informed on the ever changing landscape in the ongoing battle for gay rights in this country and across the globe."
The move comes after GLAAD called on Jepsen to speak out on the issue and Eagle Scout Derek Nance organized an online petition aimed at Jepsen which received more than 62,000 signatures.
The BSA reaffirmed its ban on openly gay scouts and leaders last year.
It is now considering dropping its national ban and allowing local chapters to decide the issue. The BSA announced last month that it would allow the 1,400 voting members of the national council to decide the issue when they meet in May.
Last week, the Grammy Award-winning band Train announced that it would not perform at the event if the policy remains in effect.
"When we booked this show for the Boy Scouts of America we were not aware of any policy barring openly gay people from participating within the organization," the band said in a statement. "Train strongly opposes any kind of policy that questions the equality of any American citizen. We have always seen the BSA as a great and noble organization. We look forward to participating in the Jamboree this summer, as long as they make the right decision before then."
"No fair-minded media outlet, corporation or celebrity will want to partner with the BSA as long as the organization puts discrimination and anti-gay bias before the needs of young people," said Rich Ferraro, GLAAD's VP of Communications. "GLAAD will continue to call for partners of the BSA to speak out against the anti-gay ban until the BSA puts Scouting first and adopts a national non-discrimination policy. Carly Rae Jepsen and Train's decisions not only send the right message to the BSA, but remind LGBT young people that they are supported and accepted."
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