The leader of the Boy Scouts of America looked into a camera last week and delivered a message: Times have changed, and one of the largest youth-serving organizations in America is changing with it.
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The Boy Scouts will open its ranks to transgender boys, chief executive Michael Surbaugh said in the video.
The decision, like previous policy changes allowing openly gay Scouts and leaders, drew criticism and praise. And like the previous changes, the move will also spark conversations among local troops and the charter organizations that sponsor them. Some could decide to part ways, as they did after the previous changes.
As the national debate swirls, some Tampa Bay area Scout leaders say the decision will have little impact at the campfire level.
If anything, they say, it could be a teachable moment.
"At the end of the day, you treat everyone with respect," said Shawn Brown, scoutmaster of Troop 222 in Tampa. "The Scout Law says be courteous and kind, and nothing changes in that aspect."
The Boy Scouts caused an uproar in 2013 when the organization announced it would allow openly gay Scouts to attend. Allowing openly gay leaders sparked an even bigger debate.
Now comes the move to accept children into the Cub and Boy Scouts based on the gender identity indicated on their application. For its 107-year history, the Boy Scouts has allowed children to join only if they were listed as "male" on their birth certificate.
The policy change comes after an 8-year-old boy in Secaucus, N.J,, was kicked out of his troop late last year when parents and leaders learned he was transgender. The boy's mother filed a civil rights complaint with the state against the Northern New Jersey Council of the Boy Scouts.
Supporters lauded the Boy Scouts' change of heart as a victory for equal rights in an organization that needed to catch up to the realities of modern gender identity. Critics said the decision was yet another betrayal of conservative values.
"I think it's a terrible move because it buys into the cultural phenomenon that says a boy can become a girl and a girl can become a boy, which in itself is a false premise and defies science," said Terry Kemple, president and founder of the Valrico-based Community Issues Council and a former Boy Scout.
Some faith-based charter organizations that sponsor Scout troops and packs have agreed with that sentiment. After the decisions to allow gay Scouts and leaders, some local churches canceled sponsorships of their troops and packs.
It was unclear last week if that will happen again.
Scout units and their faith-based chartering organizations like the National Catholic Committee on Scouting and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints still expect to have the final say in whether to accept gay and transgender Scouts. Parishes in the Catholic Diocese of St. Petersburg sponsor 45 packs, troops and crews.
Officials with the Boy Scouts of America answered some questions about the change by email.
"If a religious organization declines to accept an application based on their religious beliefs, we have requested that they notify their local council so that a unit open to accepting the individual can be offered as an option," said spokeswoman Effie Delimarkos. "We will work with families to find local Scouting units that are the best fit for their children."
But packs and troops don't always agree with the stances of their charter organizations.
In 2013, the leaders of Troop 707 and Pack 23 in Land O'Lakes formed their own charter organization after Myrtle Lakes Baptist Church dropped them when Boy Scouts of America allowed openly gay Scouts.
About the same time and for the same reason, Holy Trinity Presbyterian Church in Tampa ended its 90-year sponsorship of Boy Scout Troop 4. The troop, which will celebrate its centennial in April and is the oldest in Florida, is now sponsored by the Palma Ceia Presbyterian Church.
Troop leaders haven't spoken about transgender Scouts with church officials or parents, but previous changes didn't cause defections among its roughly 100 Scouts, said Preston Trigg, the troop's committee chairman.
Trigg said the controversy over gay and transgender members is rooted in biases. It was a sentiment echoed by other local Scout leaders who declined to speak on the record.
"Scouting is all about teaching self-reliance, citizenship and leadership, and personally I fail to see how any of these policies adversely impact that," Trigg said. "There's definitely a moral code, but I don't think they're talking about sexuality."
Critics have also raised practical concerns. Where do transgender Scouts shower, sleep and go to the restroom?
Scout leaders said they were still waiting for guidance on these issues, but generally dismissed the concerns. Most campsites have single-occupancy restrooms and showers, and Scouts typically use their own tents.
"There are going to be plenty of boys who want more privacy and we can accommodate the transgender boys in the same way we respect the privacy of those kids," said Justin Wilson, executive director of Scouts for Equality, a nonprofit that advocates for LGBTQ Scouts.
Brown, the Troop 222 scoutmaster, said he hadn't spoken to officials with his troop's sponsor, Manhattan Avenue Methodist Church, but they took a neutral position on the prior changes.
Brown also hadn't spoken with parents or Scouts by late last week but said he'll probably take some time at the next troop meeting to get their thoughts. He said he'll give them the same guidance he did the last time the Scouts made a change: Be kind and courteous and bring any concerns to scoutmasters.
"It's one thing to lead a group, it's another thing to lead yourself," he said. "It's a checks and balances for them internally. How are they thinking and feeling, and how does it affect their leadership?"
Anastasia Dawson contributed to this report. Contact Tony Marrero at tmarrero@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3374. Follow @tmarrerotimes.
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