Context: I was a Boy Scout for a number of years, making Eagle in 2020 right as COVID was really kicking off.
It was right afterwards, however, that the CSA scandal started popping up everywhere (which thankfully I was never exposed to or involved in during my time), and lately it seems like the organization & movement as a whole has fallen by the sociocultural wayside.
I would say that my time as a Scout did me objective good; I learned a decent amount about first-aid & survival-craft, participated in a number of volunteer & civic projects, and it generally made me a more well-rounded person. However, there’s no denying the impact that something “bigger than the Catholic Church scandal”, as I’ve heard it described, has on an institution such as this.
I’d like to get the community’s opinion, however; were any of you Scouts? How was your experience? What is your opinion of the institution today?
I missed out on Scouts myself. The issue with pedophiles in the Scouts goes back a lot further than 2020. The scoutmaster in my local area was convicted in the 80’s and that put my parents off the whole thing. Really, any organization which puts people in a position of power over kids is going to have to deal with that problem. When my own kids were old enough, we gave Cub Scouts a go. They seemed to have reasonable protocols in place to avoid putting kids in danger, but neither child took to it anyway. We also didn’t mesh well with the “No really, we don’t push religion. But let’s all pray to yahweh” vibe. Also, the Scouts seemed truly talented at making camping and hiking not enjoyable.
We had our kids give it a shot because we really did feel that there are some good life lessons to be learned in the scouts. And it also gave the kids more opportunities to make friends and socialize. But, in the end it wasn’t for us. I wouldn’t begrudge someone who enjoys it and wants to do it though.