Major youth groups make headway against sex abuse

[shortridge]

Just off the wires ... From the Associated Press:

 

NEW YORK (AP) The Boy Scouts have labored for decades to curtail sexual abuse of scouts by adult volunteers. But when their name was evoked in a lawsuit linked to the Penn State abuse scandal, the reference was not to problems it was acknowledgment that the Scouts' current prevention policies are considered state of the art.

 

While the local youth charity in the Penn State case has been accused of lax policies, experts in abuse prevention say most of the national organizations serving young people such as the Boy Scouts of America, Big Brothers Big Sisters, the YMCA, and Boys & Girls Clubs of America have performed commendably in drafting and enforcing tough anti-abuse policies even as they're sometimes faced with wily and manipulative molesters.

 

"I'd give them all an A-plus," said Portland State University psychologist Keith Kaufman, who has studied and treated child sex abuse victims.

 

If there's a systemic problem, Kaufman and other experts say, it's lack of data from the organizations themselves and from law enforcement agencies that could illustrate progress by youth groups. The Scouts, for example, said, "We simply do not track or have data that would help quantify trends."

 

Story: http://bit.ly/x2UkwN(This message has been edited by shortridge)

[RememberSchiff]

Good post.

 

Anyone see this in writing?

 

"Last year, in one of his first major directives, Johnson (youth protection director, Michael Johnson, a former police detective) stipulated that all adult Scout staff are mandated to report suspected child abuse to law enforcement authorities and Scout leaders, even if this would not be required by state law."

(This message has been edited by RememberSchiff)

[SeattlePioneer]

Lawyers will just look for people from twenty, thirty or more years ago to mine for lawsuits.

[Papadaddy]

@Schiff...nope.

[The Blancmange]

It's nice to see some positive national press, even if it has to be on this subject.

[shortridge]

It was in the reboot of the G2SS:

 

Mandatory Report of Child Abuse

 

All persons involved in Scouting shall report to local authorities any good faith suspicion or belief that any child is or has been physically or sexually abused, physically or emotionally neglected, exposed to any form of violence or threat, exposed to any form of sexual exploitation including the possession, manufacture, or distribution of child pornography, online solicitation, enticement, or showing of obscene material. No person may abdicate this reporting responsibility to any other person.

 

Notify your Scout executive of this report, or of any violation of BSAs Youth Protection policies, so that he or she may take appropriate action for the safety of our Scouts, make appropriate notifications, and follow-up with investigating agencies.

[RememberSchiff]

Maybe that is "the directive".

 

So no more excuses such as "we did all that was legally required" in states where there is no mandatory abuse reporting law. We are required to report.

 

Seems not releasing the "pervert files" contradicts this directive.

 

Looking forward to the KPMG report on Scouts Canada pervert files, and Scouts Canada different approach.

 

My $0.02,(This message has been edited by RememberSchiff)

[skeptic]

Same article made it to our local paper. But, they still have not found room to post my troop's 90th anniversary info. Told them the reporter assigned to interview should know I refuse to talk about political issues in the interview. Have not heard a word since?

[Engineer61]

Certainly a change for the positive with the clear reporting directive ... authorities first, Scout Execs second.

 

I agree with Schiff that not releasing the "Pervert Files" taints it a bit...we'll see how that works out when new files are being added.(This message has been edited by Engineer61)