I have this friend who I am unsure of if he is gay or not. I made a post about this a while back (but got no replies) Is he gay? Anywho, I am wondering whether to tell him or not. One major reason is that we are both in boyscouts together and I'm not sure what he would think about that... Anyway, I'm just not sure if I should tell him or not. Ask me questions about him below if you want, thanks guys! PS I just moved this from accidentally posting in the wrong thread
Well, from my understanding, Boy Scouts as an organization is not the best place to come out. I believe in recent news that a mother was discharged from being some sort of leader for the Boy Scouts because she was not heterosexual. If you come out, is there a possibility that you will be kicked out? Well, personally, I wouldn't want to be part of an organization that wouldn't embrace every part of me. Nonetheless, I am an advocate for telling others, considering the environment.
If you are comfortable with coming out to him, regardless of being in the boy scouts or not, maybe try taking him aside and talk with him. Did he ever tell you anything or give you any indications that he might not react very well with you coming out to him? To answer your previous thread, when it comes to trying to find out as to whether your friend is gay, it is best not to force it, i.e. don't ask him or try to allude to anything. It is really up to your friend to tell you of his sexual orientation. That said, it is always safest to assume that your friend is straight, until he tells you otherwise.
Why not start a conversation about glbt in general, get his feelings and responses on it. It should give you a clear indication where he is or not. You can use this then as a stepping stone to come out to him.
Thanks for all you help guys, I will try to start a conversation about LGBT soon. He is also the only one in boyscouts who I would currently tell, but I don't think he would tell anyone else in scouts.
Well, Boy Scouts, there you have your opening right there. For many years now, gay issues are nearly the only thing that puts the Scouts in the news. I have no idea how aware today's Scouts are about past issues. It was huge about 20 years ago, then came up again recently as phospholipase mentioned. So why not start by asking him how he feels about the Boy Scouts policy on gays? And GO BSA! Loved it when I was a kid. I hate that they discriminate against us. But I sure did have a lot of good times before all of that became an issue.
