The Boy Scouts are selling dozens of Norman Rockwell paintings to help raise $300 million to settle

Publish date: 2024-07-10
2021-03-03T19:20:38Z

The Boy Scouts of America, facing tens of thousands of sexual abuse claims and a daunting settlement process, is planning to sell dozens of Norman Rockwell oil paintings, according to court documents.

The organization filed a 379-page reorganization plan in federal court on Monday. It proposed a $300 million settlement trust that would be funded by money from its local councils, insurance policies, oil and gas interests, and the sale of hundreds of pieces of artwork — including 59 Rockwell paintings.

The Boy Scouts filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2020, frustrating the efforts of former Scouts who had filed hundreds of different lawsuits alleging they were abused during their time with the organization. The bankruptcy filing put a freeze on all pending litigation and ensured all new claims of sexual abuse would be handled through the bankruptcy court in Delaware, rather than other courts scattered across the country.

As of the court-mandated deadline of November 16, roughly 85,000 former Scouts came forward with sexual abuse claims, The Los Angeles Times reported.

It's unclear how much the Boy Scouts could get from the Rockwell paintings. The court documents didn't list the values of the artwork and did not state whether the paintings had been appraised.

Andrew Garrison, 11, of Salt Lake City, looks over the Rockwell exhibition at the Church History Museum Monday, July 22, 2013, in Salt Lake City, Utah. Associated Press/Rick Bowmer

Rockwell, who died in 1978, was a painter known for depicting various facets of mid-20th-century American life and culture. Though Rockwell was never a Boy Scout himself, The New York Times reported the Boy Scouts often assigned him paintings and gave him onerous specifications on exactly how to depict the Scouts.

The Boy Scouts confirmed to Insider in a statement that the organization is contributing its Rockwell collection to the settlement trust to compensate abuse survivors.

"We firmly believe that these iconic works of art represent the best of the Scouting movement and that their value should be maximized to benefit survivors," the statement said. "The artwork donated includes iconic pieces of [Rockwell's] portfolio which capture the classic American spirit and values for which his work was known, and which are still alive in Scouting today."

Most of the Rockwell pieces the organization is selling are oil on canvas paintings, though there are several lithographs and charcoal drawings included.

Lawyers for the Boy Scouts victims slammed the reorganization plan, arguing it didn't go nearly far enough in its efforts to compensate the former Scouts. One attorney representing a group of victims told The Wall Street Journal the settlement offer is "dead on arrival."

"The proposed plan provides woefully insufficient compensation for the tens of thousands of survivors grievously injured over decades as a result of Boy Scouts' failures," attorney David Molton told the newspaper.

The Boy Scouts told Insider in a statement that many aspects to the plan were still undergoing mediation.

"The Plan demonstrates that considerable progress has been made as we continue to work with all parties toward achieving our strategy to provide equitable compensation for victims and address our other financial obligations so that we can continue to serve youth for years to come," the statement said.

If you are a survivor of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline (1-800-656-4673) or visit its website to receive confidential support.

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