While Congress was debating what to do with the Wall Street bailouts this week, they took the time to vote on one other piece of legislation dealing with money.

Amidst the largest financial crisis in our nation’s history, our senators unanimously passed a bill yesterday supporting an organization that discriminates against atheists and gays.

Yesterday, the Senate approved the “Boy Scouts of America Centennial Commemorative Coin Act” (S. 3070):

The bill mandates that the U.S. Mint create and sell as many as 350,000 one dollar coins commemorating the Scouts’ centennial in the year 2010. A ten dollar surcharge on each coin goes directly to the Boy Scouts of America, who will net as much as $3.5 million in the deal.

The Secular Coalition for America isn’t happy about this:

“It is outrageous that Congress took time out to fill the coffers of a private and discriminatory group with our tax dollars when they clearly have more pressing issues to deal with,” said Lori Lipman Brown, director of the Secular Coalition for America. The legislation, a version of which passed the House in May, was passed by unanimous consent in the Senate, so no individual Senator is on record as supporting or opposing it.

In fact, the House bill (H.R. 5872) passed 403 – 8.

Who had the courage to vote against the bill?

Lynn Woolsey [D – CA]

Barbara Lee [D – CA]

Pete Stark [D – CA]

Luis Gutierrez [D – IL]

Barney Frank [D – MA]

Dennis Kucinich [D – OH]

James McDermott [D – WA]

Tammy Baldwin [D – WI]

Shame on the other members of Congress for supporting a discriminatory organization that so many of us would not be allowed to join.



