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Constitutional Law Keyed to Chemerinsky
Boy Scouts of America v. Dale
Citation:
530 U.S. 640 (2000)Facts
James Dale entered BSA as an eight year old in 1978. He ultimately achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, and then ae applied for and was accepted as an adult member. He became an assistant scoutmaster in 1989. Around this same time, he entered college and came out as gay. He became involved in gay rights’ activism and advocacy. A year later, in 1990, BSA revoked his membership, citing BSA policies that specifically forbid membership to homosexuals.
In 1992, Dale filed a complaint in New Jersey court, arguing that BSA violated New Jersey public accommodations law by discriminating against him on the basis of sexual orientation. The New Jersey Supreme Court held that the BSA was a place of public accommodation and that it had to abide by public accommodations laws.
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Topic Resources
Topic Outline
First Amendment