These searing photographs helped ban child labor in America -- until now

[justaprogressive]

Around the turn of the 20th century, at least 18 percent of children between the ages of 10 and 15 were employed. Hine’s searing images of those children remade the public perception of child labor and inspired the laws to ban it.

Now, conservative lawmakers in a handful of states are seeking to relax child labor protections. Their efforts come amid a renewed focus on child labor sparked largely by recent reporting on the prevalence of undocumented immigrant children working at meatpacking plants, auto factories and other dangerous job sites.

The Library of Congress maintains a collection of more than 5,000 of Hine’s photographs, including the thousands he took for the National Child Labor Committee, known as the NCLC.

“It was Lewis Hine who made sure that millions of children are not working today,” Jeffrey Newman, a former president of the New York-based nonprofit, said in 2018.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2023/05/01/child-labor-laws-lewis-hine/

[milestogo]

1. Now we have Fuckabee Sanders doing her level best

to send children to work in Arkansas. Gotta feed all those hungry mouths.

[RSherman]

2. Child lost 7" of scalp

I taught Labor History and Labor Reform. One packet I used told the story of a 7 year old girl who was a bobbin hopper. She jumped from loom to loom to change the bobbins. Her hair caught and she lost it plus 7 inches of scalp. Ugh. Disgusting that Republicans want to return us to those times.

[Hekate]

3. Very important issue, but a Paywall. Any chance you could post the photos from the article?

Thanks.

[IrishAfricanAmerican]

4. Gift link...

https://wapo.st/483C7yX

[Hekate]

7. Thanks

[iluvtennis]

9. +1. n/t

[Delmette2.0]

15. Thank you.

[Richard D]

5. Perhaps this is part of the real reason for . . .

. . . the forced birth movement?

[maveric]

6. My Grandfather went to work in the textile mills of Lawrence Ma at 10 yrs old.

Kids were sent intro machines to clean them out. He was born in 1901.
His father and another of my Great Grandfathers were involved in the 1912 Bread and Roses strike. They didn’t know each other as one was Irish and the other Sicilian. But both were there and active in that movement.
It was a barbaric practice sending children into machinery like that.
That strike changed many aspects of labor in this country.

[Orrex]

8. I'm in a "good ol days" FB group

It's nominally for nostalgia about days gone by, but in practice it's a festering marsh of MAGA fuckheads united by racism, bigotry, raging transphobia and profound ignorance.

They've lately been absolutely clamoring for the repeal of these "nanny state" child labor laws, because they're MAGA fuckheads.

"It should be up to the parents," they say.

"If they can work, why shouldn't they?" they ask.

"Better than wasting time on their phone," they chortle.

Fuck every MAGAT. If every one of them vanished tomorrow, the world would instantly be a much, much better place.


Where the hell is this Rapture thing I've heard about?

[iluvtennis]

10. What's that saying, "Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.". And here

America is repeating this travesty. Kids shouldn't be allowed to work in industrial/manufacturing industries.

Let them work at libraries, at retail counters, fast food counters, and the like. And they shouldn't be allowed to work more that 2 hours per day as they need to tend to their schooling/studies.

That's my old school opinion.

[Solly Mack]

11. K&R

[kimbutgar]

12. I have a scholastic book that I brought years ago with pictures of child labor in America

When I was subbing a 5th grade class I read some of the book and showed them the pictures. We had such an interesting conversation and when I tried to end it they wanted to all talk more about the pictures and have me read more of the book!

It was so hard for me to not say something political that the Republican want this again for kids in this country.

[Martin68]

13. Excellent article and photos. Thanks for sharing.

[3Hotdogs]

14. And as I recall, it was Mother Jones who led a contingent of chiild mine workers to Washington

to protest against child labor.

Hines and Riis were excellent documentarians.