Book Recommendation: 'Gay, Catholic, and American' by Greg Bourke
In his memoir, Greg Bourke tells the story of his fight for gay inclusion in the Boy Scouts, and his role in the movement for same-sex marriage.
I’ve spent a good bit of time this week making my way through Greg Bourke’s memoir, which was published in 2021 and tells a compelling story about his legal battles for LGBTQ+ equality.
I was drawn to the book because I knew that a big part of Bourke’s story involved the Boy Scouts of America and its anti-gay membership policies. (And also because the book came highly recommended by Dave Knapp).
I’ll admit that I haven’t quite finished the book yet, but I would definitely recommend it already. I’m particularly struck by Bourke’s path through Scouting as an at-first reluctant volunteer in Kentucky, who joined the program to support his son. At nearly every turn, he was accepted as an openly gay man by troop and church leadership, and spent a decade in the program without issue.
It wasn’t until he notified his council’s leadership about his status as a gay man that things got complicated, and he was ultimately forced to resign his position. The incident spurred his activism around gay inclusion in the BSA, as he became very involved in Scouts for Equality.
I won’t give away the whole story here, but here’s the blurb of the book if you’re interested in learning more:
“In this compelling and deeply affecting memoir, Greg Bourke recounts growing up in Louisville, Kentucky, and living as a gay Catholic. The book describes Bourke’s early struggles for acceptance as an out gay man living in the South during the 1980s and ’90s, his unplanned transformation into an outspoken gay rights activist after being dismissed as a troop leader from the Boy Scouts of America in 2012, and his historic role as one of the named plaintiffs in the landmark United States Supreme Court decision Obergefell vs. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide in 2015. After being ousted by the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), former Scoutmaster Bourke became a leader in the movement to amend antigay BSA membership policies. The Archdiocese of Louisville, because of its vigorous opposition to marriage equality, blocked Bourke’s return to leadership despite his impeccable long-term record as a distinguished boy scout leader. But while making their home in Louisville, Bourke and his husband, Michael De Leon, have been active members at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church for more than three decades, and their family includes two adopted children who attended Lourdes school and were brought up in the faith. Over many years and challenges, this couple has managed to navigate the choppy waters of being openly gay while integrating into the fabric of their parish life community. Bourke is unapologetically Catholic, and his faith provides the framework for this inspiring story of how the Bourke De Leon family struggled to overcome antigay discrimination by both the BSA and the Catholic Church and fought to legalize same-sex marriage across the country.
Gay, Catholic, and American is an illuminating account that anyone, no matter their ideological orientation, can read for insight. It will appeal to those interested in civil rights, Catholic social justice, and LGBTQ inclusion.”
