Editorial
Suit Sinks Like a Stone

It must have been a shock to the Berkeley Sea Scouts when their free berthing privileges evaporated in 1997. But using the First Amendment is a baseless argument meant to try and save themselves from the $500 monthly fee.

An affiliate of the Boy Scouts, the Sea Scouts enjoyed a free berth for over 50 years. That changed when the City Council passed a 1997 resolution granting free use of city resources only to nonprofit organizations that complied with the city's non-discrimination policy. In order to hold on to the free berth, the Sea Scouts would have had to disavow the Boy Scouts' policy of excluding homosexuals and atheists.

When the Scouts took the matter to court, it was dismissed in a pre-trial hearing because they had no case. But now the Scouts' suit has reached the State Supreme Court. It's surprising, since the Sea Scouts' argument-that the city infringed on their First Amendment right to association-holds no water.

It's not as if the Scouts are being excluded from a universal privilege-most people have to pay the city for their berths. And while the Scouts claim they're being forced to comply because of financial "government arm-twisting," it's not the city's job to baby-sit private clubs. Berkeley was well within its rights to remove the Scouts' free access.

Berkeley has no obligation to fund private organizations with its citizens' tax dollars. What the city does have is an obligation to ensure its money only goes to groups that follow its regulations. The Berkeley Sea Scouts are a private club, and if they want to maintain their own practices, they're free to continue to do so-just not with city money.