The scandal surrounding disgraced former doctor Larry Nassar, USA Gymnastics and sports medicine physician at Michigan State University, goes beyond all the horror he put more than 150 women and young girls through. Nassar was sentenced to 175 years in prison in January, after pleading guilty to charges of criminal sexual conduct and federal child pornography charges

For seven days, survivors of his crimes gave statements detailing the abuse they endured. Among Nassar's alleged victims, were celebrated U.S. Olympians like Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas, and Simone Biles. Many of the other women who accused him of sexual abuse included young athletes, dancers, and volleyball players who were abused while their parents were in the same room.

What is more troubling and worth talking about is the silence behind the scandal. How does someone get away with abusing hundreds of women, including minors, for years? The problem is bigger than Larry Nassar, the problem lies with the people and organizations who were supposed to keep these girls and women safe because of their silence and cover-ups.

Nassar had access and power over the young athletes because of his position as an athletic trainer with USA Gymnastics, but also being faculty at Michigan State. Not only was he a renowned sports physician but also part of an academic institution, which meant he played an important part in the success of both institutions.

The cover-up

In 2016, an investigation by IndyStar found that USA Gymnastics was not reporting sexual abuse allegations against its coaches despite seeing warning signs. The investigation also revealed coaches were free to move from gym to gym, giving them access to more young athletes. IndyStar also reported that nearly 370 gymnasts have alleged sexual abuse within the organization over the past 20 years but nothing was done. Details revealed through this investigation lead to Nassar's arrest and eventual exposure of years of abuse ignored by one of America's most prominent youth sports organizations.

While it may be difficult to understand why predators do what they do, we need to examine the flawed system that protects them and helps them continue to abuse the vulnerable. Multiple cases were filed against USA Gymnastics coaches, yet no action was taken. Reports show the organization dismissed the first of four warnings against a coach in Georgia, allowing him to prey on young female athletes for seven years after the cases were swept under the rug by the organization.

He is now serving a 60-year sentence in federal prison. The shocking part is that USA Gymnastics dismissed not one but several cases that alleged sexual abuse among coaches. Records show more than 50 complaints were filed to the organization, but the content of those files was kept secret. Although it's against the law not to report the alleged abuse of a child, the organization found a loophole to keep it from reporting multiple complaints, which is a bigger problem than keeping predators out.

A problem with institutional abuse

Sexual harassment and abuse, unfortunately, exist in every industry but institutional abuse can be stopped by simply taking abuse allegations seriously. USA Gymnastics was focused more on winning championships and gold medals than the safety of young athletes, which is a major problem that is happening in other organizations and institutions. For example, colleges and universities across the U.S. have been accused of not reporting or underreporting the number of sexual assault, domestic violence and stalking incidents on campus.

This problem does not exist in a vacuum and it is not something that will go away unless we begin to take every case seriously. There will be times where predators slip through the cracks, and the only way to stop them is to report allegations of abuse despite the reputation of the accused.

The investigation against USA Gymnastics was brought up after multiple people came forward and demanded an answer from the organization. If it wasn't for the effort of these people, perhaps all of this would've been done privately.

If you hear or believe someone you know is being abused, it's important to take action and speak to an attorney. Abuse cases or harassment cases could come down to hearsay which could be used against the accuser, in which case you will need the help of a legal professional.

You can read the full investigation into USA Gymnastics here.