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 was a Scout in the 90s. The pedophilia allegations were rampant back then, too. And the beginnings of the christo-fascist movement. And (in my troop) the paramilitary indoctrination. I lobbied all of my frustrations to my parents who made me stay in until Life, just before Eagle. I think they figured I’d just go ahead and finish it out. Nope.
I got SO many valuable life lessons from Scouts, but the organization itself is so disgusting it is hard to fathom. The dads that were there to help were great! The merit badges are simple paths to learning new skills. Friends your age sharing an experience, commiserating with boys at a fucking brutal time in your life, all good! But even with all that value, I still saw the organization for what it was. I got what I could out of it, but how can you reconcile the comradery you feel with the pain the Scouts are causing others?
Boys need a safe space.