SNAP Stands with Survivors from the Boy Scouts of America
A new lawsuit is alleging ongoing cover-up of cases of child abuse within the ranks of the Boy Scouts of America. Survivors and advocates from SNAP stand in solidarity with these survivors of institutional sexual abuse and hope that they will have the chance at justice they deserve.
Attorneys Tim Kosnoff and Stewart Eisenberg made public files showing that there have been at least 350 “previously unknown” abusers within the BSA. In response to the news, leaders from the BSA said that they have filed at least 120 reports to local law enforcement.
This case is another example of an institution attempting to police itself and failing miserably. The BSA’s own internal database of “ineligible volunteers” is all too similar to the “secret archives” or “bishop’s files” that have been used in the Catholic Church to keep allegations of sexual abuse from becoming public. We hope that law enforcement across the country are looking closely at this news and will be finding ways to obtain and investigate those files and claims for themselves. Police and prosecutors should be the ones tasked with reviewing and storing information about child abusers, not independent institutions.
We hope that this news will encourage others who may have been abused during their time as Boy Scouts to come forward, make a report to police, and find independent sources of help to start healing. We in SNAP stand in solidarity with these survivors and hope that they, too, will get a chance at justice and accountability.
CONTACT: Zach Hiner, Executive Director (517-974-9009, [email protected])
(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)