|
|
|
| Wed, Nov. 25 - - Mobile - RSS | |
|
|
Jamboree suit fails on appeal
Federal Appeals Court reverses ban on government funding for the National Scout Jamboree
Date published: 4/5/2007
BY JEFF BRANSCOME A federal appeals court in Chicago yesterday reversed a ban on government funding for the National Boy Scout Jamboree at Fort A.P. Hill. That means the Pentagon can spend millions--as it has in the past--to ready the Caroline County Army post for the 2010 jamboree. "Today's decision allows everyone to get back to planning the centennial Jamboree celebrating the Boy Scouts' 100th birthday," George Davidson, an attorney for the Boy Scouts of America, said in a statement. The American Civil Liberties Union sued the Defense Department in 1999, claiming its sponsorship of the Scouts violates the First Amendment. That's because the group requires its members to swear an oath of duty to God. A federal judge ruled in favor of the ACLU in 2005. A spokesman for the civil-liberties group could not be reached yesterday. In a written statement to The Associated Press, ACLU attorney Adam Schwartz said, "We continue to believe that government funding to support private activities which excludes persons on the basis of their beliefs is unconstitutional." The Boy Scouts received about $7 million from the Defense Department for the 2005 jamboree, according to court documents released yesterday. A.P. Hill has hosted the jamboree--the Boy Scouts' largest youth gathering--since 1981. The court of appeals judges acknowledged that atheists and agnostics can't become Scouts. But, they wrote, non-Scouts may attend the jamboree. They can visit on certain days for limited activities but can't spend the night. The court also supported Congress' decision to allow the military to "take advantage of a built-in audience of potential recruits." That's a "secular and valid purpose," the judges wrote. A statute enables the military to support private groups if "such assistance is incidental to military training," the court documents state. Troops police the 2,200-acre site, dubbed the fastest-growing city. In 2005, 43,000 Scouts and leaders converged on the military base. An act passed by Congress in 2005 says the military's participation in the jamboree develops "leadership for defending our national security and preparing for combat." Scout spokesman Robert Bork noted this "Support our Scouts" act in a statement yesterday. "We are pleased that today's ruling preserves the training opportunity for the military that Congress wanted it to have," he said. Jeff Branscome: 540/374-5402Email: jbranscome@freelancestar.com
Date published: 4/5/2007
|
 |
|||
|
|||
