Sexual Assault in Boys and Girls Club — Part of a Larger Problem?

The arrest of a Boys and Girls Club employee for sexual assault raises the question of whether there is a larger problem of sexual abuse within the organization?

A Boys and Girls Club childcare worker was arrested last week after a sexual assault at a school in Little Rock, according to the Northwest Arkansas Democrat Herald.  News reports indicate that Boys and Girls Club employee Gregory Wilson sexually assaulted the victim in a classroom in a Fayetteville Public School where the Boys and Girls club operates a program.  News reports indicate that the victim in this case was not a minor.  Wilson apparently entered the classroom where the victim was located, started making sexual comments and touching her.  When the victim tried to get away, Wilson allegedly pushed the victim down, grabbed her legs, pulled her back into the room, and began to sexually assault her.  The victim eventually broke free and ran to a teacher’s lounge, where school janitors prevented the perpetrator from continuing the assault, according to media reports.

The Donald W. Reynolds Boys & Girls Club operates an after-school program called School Kids Connection in the Fayetteville Public Schools.  The Club apparently released a statement acknowledging that a Club employee was accused of engaging in inappropriate behavior and was now banned from all Boys & Girls Club operations.

While banning this abuser in this case is an important step, this is not an isolated incident.  Unfortunately, there have been a number of recent cases of sexual abuse within Boys and Girls Clubs around the country.  Our attorneys have helped a number of victims of child sexual abuse in Boys and Girls Clubs.  You can read about our work in advocating for victims of abuse in the Boys and Girls Club, or check out other stories about sexual abuse in the Boys and Girls Club.  While the Boys and Girls Club offers a positive experience to many of the youth involved, it appears that the organization still has significant work to do in implement and uniformly enforcing necessary protective policies to prevent sexual abuse in their programs.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of child sexual abuse or a sexual assault in a Boys and Girls Club program, we are here to help.  Please call 1-888-407-0224 or email us today to speak with someone confidentially.  Together, we can help make kids safer.