Big Brothers Big Sisters to allow gay, lesbian mentors
Posted on Fri, Aug. 16, 2002
Big Brothers Big Sisters to allow gay, lesbian mentors
Eagle staff and news services
NEW YORK - Big Brothers Big Sisters of America has told its 490 local affiliates to give openly gay and lesbian volunteers an equal chance to serve as one-on-one mentors to children, incurring the wrath of several conservative groups.
The 98-year-old youth organization -- devoted to helping children from single-parent homes -- says it is undaunted by the criticism.
Big Brothers Big Sisters has endorsed nondiscrimination principles for 25 years that cover sexual orientation, race, religion and ethnicity. Only last month, however, did the provision about sexual orientation become mandatory policy for all affiliates, a few of which had been rejecting gay volunteers.
One of those affiliates was Big Brothers Big Sisters of Sedgwick County, the largest Big Brothers Big Sisters agency in the country. Last year, it served more than 6,400 children.
"We felt our community standards were such that it was something that was not appropriate here," said Nick Mork, former executive director of the Sedgwick County agency. He is now president and chief executive of Kansas Big Brothers Big Sisters.
Mork said local policy is now in alignment with the national directive.
"We're seeing persons who are openly gay and lesbian in leadership roles," Mork said. "It made us see circumstances had changed."
Despite the new policy, parents still have the option of rejecting mentors for various reasons, including sexual orientation.
"We've been trying to get them to allow gay and lesbian Bigs just because it was the right thing to do," said Kristi Parker, editor of Liberty Press, a Kansas gay and lesbian news magazine. "A lot of people who wanted to be Bigs can now go through the process."
Mork anticipated that there may be some backlash in Kansas from groups who oppose the policy change.
"Anytime you have change there will be some people who will be unhappy," he said.
"There are those groups who feel very strongly, from some religious base, that to condone a person whose lifestyle is gay or lesbian is wrong. They aren't going to be happy with us.
"On the other hand," Mork said, "this seemed like a pretty clear thing for us to do."
Mork said many corporations and large employers have policies that will not allow them to make contributions to agencies that discriminate.
Donald Wildmon, chairman of the American Family Association based in Tupelo, Miss., contends that Big Brothers Big Sisters "will become a magnet for homosexuals who exploit opportunities to engage young, impressionable children with their unhealthy lifestyle."
His association's Web site offers a form letter to be sent to the group's corporate supporters, asking that they suspend donations until Big Brothers Big Sisters "repeals this dangerous and troubling policy."
Another conservative group, Focus on the Family, said its founder, James Dobson, would delete favorable references to the organization in future editions of his recent book "Bringing Up Boys."
Focus on the Family's psychologist-in-residence, Bill Maier, said the group should realize that "matching fatherless boys, starving for attention, with homosexual men is reckless and irresponsible, not to mention a recipe for disaster."
Mork emphasized that the Kansas affiliate would not match anyone who would be a risk to a child's well being.
"We think we have -- we know we have -- the best system in place of any service organization to determine whether or not a person is safe," he said.
"Our business is built on that trust."
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Contributing: Beccy Tanner of The Eagle.
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