Child labor: What is it?
As defined by the International Labor Organization, child labor is the work that is mentally, physically, or socially dangerous and harmful to children and interferes with their schooling. Imagine a 13-year old rummaging through a landfill near the Gaza-Israel border to find scraps of plastic, aluminum, and copper, to support his family of nine siblings and an unemployed father. Imagine working all day trying to find kilograms of plastic, only to be paid $1 USD. It seems unimaginable that a child has to be put through this, but 152 million are victims of child labor.
Children have the least represented voice because they are born into their parent's footsteps, while some even live in conflicted areas, forcing them to provide for their family, though education is not an option due to financial problems.
Children have the least represented voice because they are born into their parent's footsteps, while some even live in conflicted areas, forcing them to provide for their family, though education is not an option due to financial problems.
Bekir BeloBelo, a 7 year old boy, doesn't know how to spell his name because he never got a proper education. He sells roses every night and he cannot come back home until he sells them all. |
Kamal KaneenKaneen, a 12 year old, risks his life everyday by delivering items on a motorcycle without a helmet for his father who injured his leg. |
ShefaliShefali, an 11-year old prostitute, gets her eyebrow threaded in front of Kandapara brothel. Her employer takes away all of her income, but in exchange she gets food three times in a day and some gifts occasionally. |
Out of the 152 children working, half of them, 73 million, work in hazardous child labor, which is work that is performed by children in dangerous conditions that can lead to a child being killed, injured or ill (ILO). According to Anti-Slavery.org, hazardous child labor occurs in agriculture, fisheries, mining, construction, manufacturing, and domestic service, but any type of child labor, whether dangerous or not, prevents the possibility of proper education. With children working full time to earn meager wages, the chance to find an appropriate education is deficient. Even if children do not work, materials such as uniforms, pencils, and other items are incredibly costly for parents to purchase. Without education, children will struggle to find better jobs in the future, especially if they cannot read or write. This could affect their future families and keeps the poverty cycle flowing. But, children cannot protest against working because they are powerless; families rely on them to help them with income. Children are the least heard.