Thoughts on protecting children on Christmas Eve

I read an widely spread email from the Chief Scout Executive today.  

The BSA continues to stamp out abuse of children.  Unlike the Catholic Church, the BSA is being effective by reporting child abuse, suspected child abuse and cooperating fully with authorities.  Nevertheless, the BSA is being sued. 

I have no comment on the lawsuits.  They are valid.  They are invalid.  They are based on the whole truth.  They are based on half-truths.  They are lies.  Beats me.  I wasn’t there.  Ultimately, a jury of citizens will decide.  That’s a bad way to decide, except that it beats any other way that humanity has thought of.  

The BSA Chief Scout Executive was addressing the continued viability of the BSA in light of the existing suits.  And I believe him, that Scouting will get through this and also fulfill it’s legal and moral requirements to compensate victims.  That is following the responsible nature of the Scouting program.  

Recently, I took the fairly extensive online training which EVERY adult volunteer has to take on child protection.  Fail to take it, you will be suspended.  Harsh?  Maybe.  But the motto of the Boy Scouts is “Be Prepared.”  Part of being prepared is knowing the dangers which exist to the youth we serve.

When child abuse occurs or is suspected to have occurred, things happen.  MANY people - including me - are “mandatory reporters,” that is, we are legally REQUIRED to report suspected abuse.  As a prosecutor, there is not any sort of hesitation possible in reporting child abuse.  No “secret oath” exists which will prevent that.  

(For that matter, there are no “secret oaths” in Scouting.  Even the camping honorary organization, the Order of the Arrow, is open to community people to observe what we do.)

Reporting child abuse or suspected child abuse after is happens in critically important.  There is NOBODY worthy of being protected, and we just don’t do that.

But PREVENTING child abuse - That’s the key.  Giving the inherently sneaky child abuser no opportunity.  Believe me, these guys are sneaky.  (BTW, most child abuse generally, and nearly all child sexual abuse, is committed by men.  Maybe that’s why the public gets a little titillated when you have a woman abusing a boy.)  

The BSA has a robust program.  It features annual training about its components.  Mainly, no adult in the program is supposed to be alone with any youth member under any circumstances.  Most of the simple rules expand on that concept.   The strength is that the rules are clear and simple.  They are bothersome, and it’s unfortunate that we need them.  But we do.  Period.

A number of non-Catholic Churches have dealt with these issues.  Sometime ago, I read a story about a mega-church which had a younger guy working with youth accused of offenses.  The Church explained that the higher ups in the church only found out about it after the accused offender had been arrested.  A very junior youth pastor had called the police, and the church supported him/her.  

Once these people get to prison, they usually have to go into protective custody.  Convicts don’t like child abusers and someone already serving a life sentence doesn’t have much stopping him to hurt of kill a child abuser.  

Another possible partial answer is to return to letting the school system teach basic morals, e.g., don’t lie, don’t hurt, don’t steal.  Right now, that doesn’t appear on the horizon, so the main force we have to teach moral values is from the agencies that serve children.  

It’s going to get worse before it gets better.  But if we don’t enter the fight, it never will get better.

Mizpah!