Report: Boy Scouts To Pay $18,000, Apologize To Transgender Boy Thrown Out Of Pack
SECAUCUS, N.J. (CBS) -- The Northern New Jersey Council of the Boy Scouts of America is reportedly paying a 9-year-old transgender boy $18,000 and apologizing to him after he was thrown out of a cub pack last year.
According to NorthJersey.com, the council told Joe Maldonado's mother, Kristie Maldonado, that he could no longer belong to a Cub Scout pack in Secaucus because he was born a girl.
Joe's mother then filed a discrimination complaint with the state Division on Civil Rights. The 9-year-old was allowed back in earlier this year when the national office of the Boy Scouts issued a statement saying it would begin accepting transgender children, reports NorthJersey.com.
New Jersey Boy Becomes First Openly Transgender Boy Scout
Effie Delimarkos, director of communications for the Boy Scouts of America, issued a statement Thursday saying they are "happy to welcome Joe and the Maldonado family back into the Scouting community."
"Moving forward, the BSA will continue to work to bring the benefits of our programs to as many children, families and communities as possible," Delimarkos said.
NorthJersey.com reports Joe has now joined a Cub Scout pack in Maplewood where parents approached his mother and told her that they were happy to have her son as a member.
The 9-year-old is the first openly transgender boy Scout.