A wholesome US institution poisoned by predators

The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) - one of the largest youth organisations in the US - has filed for bankruptcy amid an avalanche of sexual abuse allegations.

The century-old group became as เว็บพนันอันดับ1 American as the Norman Rockwell paintings that immortalise their three-fingered salutes.

But its considerable membership - 2.4 million youth participants - is about half what it was in the 1970s, a decline that tracks mounting scrutiny surrounding the Scouts.

So what is behind the rise - and fall - of this American institution?
Founded in 1910, the non-profit claims 2.2 million youth members and 800,000 volunteers across the country.

According to BSA, more than 130 million young people เย็ดกัน have participated in Scouts programmes since its inception.
It boasts famous alumni like ex-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and former Secretary of Defence Robert Gates

Considered a bastion of traditional American values, the BSA's self-declared "foundation of scouting" includes an oath to fulfil one's "duty to God and my country", with a mission to "prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices".

But behind the camp fire singalongs lurked "the largest paedophile ring on earth", a lawyer representing alleged victims said last year.

The BSA has been beset with a deluge of sexual misconduct allegations.

In February 2019, as reports emerged that BSA was considering filing for bankruptcy, the Abused in Scouting group used television ads to reach Boy Scouts across the country and found nearly 2,000 people with complaints, including one in every state, according to the New York Times.