Boy Scouts to consider lifting ban on openly gay youths
By Katia Hetter, CNN
(CNN) - The Boy Scouts of America would no longer deny membership to youth on the basis of sexual orientation, but would maintain its ban on openly gay adult leaders under a proposal it is considering, the group said Friday.
The organization's executive committee made the proposal, which is expected to be presented to the Boy Scouts' voting members in May. If the policy is approved, it would take effect starting January 1.
"If approved, the resolution would mean that 'no youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone.' The BSA will maintain the current membership policy for all adults," Boy Scouts public relations director Deron Smith said.
The Boys Scouts have been considering a change in the longstanding policy against allowing openly gay members. In February, the Boy Scouts' national executive board postponed a vote on lifting its outright ban on openly gay Scouts and troop leaders and ordered a survey of its members on the issue.
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Will San Francisco name airport after slain gay icon Harvey Milk?
(CNN) - "Boarding for Harvey Milk San Francisco International Airport."
Civil rights activist Stuart Milk can imagine the impact of that airport announcement on the scared young people he's met in the United Arab Emirates and other countries around the world, where gay people live in fear for their lives.
Stuart Milk's uncle Harvey Milk, a San Francisco supervisor, was one of the first openly gay politicians in the United States when he and San Francisco Mayor George Moscone were killed by former supervisor Dan White at City Hall in 1978.
"San Francisco has 9 million international passengers and about 40 million passengers total passing through annually, and (this name change) sends an important message of societal change," said Stuart Milk, co-founder of the Harvey Milk Foundation.
The name change could become a reality if a San Francisco lawmaker has his way.
David Campos, an openly gay Latino member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, plans to introduce legislation Tuesday to make naming the city's airport after Milk possible.
The supervisor sees the likelihood of U.S. Supreme Court rulings later this year on cases getting at "the core of whether or not members of the LGBT community will have equal treatment under the law" as a prime time to initiate the tribute to Milk.
Where to find exceptional America
By Katia Hetter, CNN
(CNN) - This week, CNN is exploring American exceptionalism - the concept that the United States is exceptional when compared to other nations and is uniquely destined to bring democracy to the world.
That notion of American exceptionalism was promoted by the nation's founders and earliest leaders. It's especially evident in the places where the Puritans first landed and built their first settlements, where explorers traveled westward to fulfill the country's manifest destiny, and to purchase or take land by force.
"The American sites that evoke a sense of American exceptionalism are many; they include places that mark the history of our struggles to secure and protect liberty, and places that evoke the promise and opportunity that generations have found in America," says Thomas S. Kidd, a Baylor University history professor, a senior fellow at Baylor's Institute for Studies of Religion and author of "Patrick Henry: First Among Patriots," "God of Liberty: A Religious History of the American Revolution" and other early American history books.
We asked several American historians where they enjoy exploring the history of the United States. Here are some of their favorite spots:
Washington, D.C. There's nothing wrong with enjoying some of the United States' more well-known monuments to its history. A trip to Washington could include a visit to the Washington Monument, the Jefferson Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial and the National Archives. The National Archives Building Rotunda displays the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. (If this history lesson bores the children, promise them a visit to the International Spy Museum later.)
About In America
What defines you? Maybe it’s the shade of your skin, the place you grew up, the accent in your words, the make up of your family, the gender you were born with, the intimate relationships you chose to have or your generation? As the American identity changes we will be there to report it. In America is a venue for creative and timely sharing of news that explores who we are. Reach us at inamerica@cnn.com.
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