Leave No Trace: A Hidden History of Boy Scouts of America: How did the camps become the ideal breeding ground for predators?

With over 82,000 cases of s*xual abuse allegations, the Boy Scouts of America, or the BSA, recently announced a $2.7 billion settlement to the victims of the once-esteemed organization that fell from grace amidst a rising number of lawsuits against them.

While Irene Taylor's documentary Leave No Trace: The Hidden History of Boy Scouts of America delves deep into the cases and the survivors, it also raises one very important question. How did the instances of s*xual abuse reach this staggering number and what does it say about the BSA?

The documentary also subtly explored the conditions that led to the Boy Scouts of America becoming a breeding ground for predators, including a lack of awareness, young victims, lack of repercussions, and nearly no proper measures that would work effectively to shield the children from the clutches of abusers.

Leave No Trace: The Hidden History of Boy Scouts of America was released on June 16, 2022, on Hulu, and in theatres in New York and Los Angeles.

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Why was the Boy Scouts of America a hub for predators and pedophiles?

With such a high number of reported cases, it does make one wonder how this tradition went on for so long and dragged on so far before some drastic measure was taken. The Boy Scouts of America had faced several lawsuits in the past but reportedly agreed to settle without taking it to court. It was only after the insurance companies refused to pay out to victims of the BSA that the organization filed for bankruptcy and a settlement.

One of the key reasons behind these terrible crimes is the lack of proper repercussions. The BSA did not punish or prosecute those who were accused or caught perpetrating sexual violence. Instead, they were warned, transferred, or put on probation. At worst, they were removed from the ranks, which rarely happened. This meant that pedophiles could get away with it quite easily because there were no major ramifications for such a serious crime.

A part of the documentary pointed out that after getting caught abusing children, scoutmasters or volunteers were removed from the camp, only to reappear in another camp in another state. In the 1980s, a spokesperson for the BSA said on tape that 100 cases of s*xual abuse a year is not really a problem among seven or eight thousand boy scouts.

This impulse to protect those in their ranks made the organization so vulnerable to predators. There were reportedly hundreds of pedophiles working in the BSA's ranks as scoutmasters or volunteers. Of course, the geography and the timing made it easy for predators as desolated campsites served as a perfect breeding ground.

Another major reason that the film left out is the social stigma of male s*xual abuse. Most victims remained silent, some until their late fifties and sixties, due to the stigma attached to male s*xual abuse. As the scouts advertised that they would make a man out of the boys, they also inherently endorsed the machismo that comes with being a 'man.' This made it harder for young boys to come to terms with the fact that a man can also be s*xually abused.

Finally, the BSA took ineffective measures to counter the problems when they were brought up. The end credits of the documentary revealed that most of the cases of s*xual abuse surfaced after protective measures were introduced by the BSA.

Leave No Trace: The Hidden History of Boy Scouts of America is now streaming on Hulu.