Madonna Shows Up To GLAAD Awards In Boy Scouts Uniform, Says Little To Support Gay Scouts

madonnaLeave it to Madonna to hop onto a social controversy without actually contributing to its discussion. The ongoing debate over the Boy Scouts of America’s discriminatory policy to refuse membership to gay scouts and troop leaders hit a new level of outrage when the group sent out inflammatory and leading surveys for its former members and parent volunteers. Musical acts like Carly Rae Jepsen and Train have been in the news for refusing to perform at the Boy Scouts annual Jamboree. Then Madge decided to get involved.

At this weekend’s GLAAD Awards, Madonna showed up to honor Anderson Cooper in a Boy Scout’s uniform. She opened her 10-minute speech/rant by lamenting that the Boy Scouts wouldn’t let her join, which was ridiculous because she knew how to start a fire, pitch a tent, and scout for boys. She then asked everyone to agree with her that the organization needed to change their policies.

The stunt worked in some ways. The image of Madonna dressed as a Boy Scout was sure to grab attention and a couple headlines, which is all that the pop star generally seems to be concerned about. But at the same time, I wonder if it helped the actual issue she was pretending to be worked up about.

The issue isn’t actually about the Boy Scouts allowing girls to join. It’s about recognizing that LGBTQ youth should be able to have the same experience as their straight peers. It’s about accepting that homosexual troop leaders or scouts are not somehow “threats” to a straight child’s safety. It’s honestly a serious issue about inclusion in one of our country’s oldest youth organizations.

But I don’t think Madonna is really concerned with that. I think she just wants to be involved in the latest gossip or movement. And this was another way to get herself noticed. If she really wanted to contribute to the conversation, I feel like she would’ve had more to say than, “I know how to scout for boys.” Sorry Madonna. Not Helping.

(Photo: Michael Carpenter/WENN)

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