Whenever any form of improper or acute injustice directed towards a group of audience, slavery and forced child labor never go unheard. Forced labor and slavery has for years been a major trauma affecting most developed and developing countries. The vice affects both the countries either directly or indirectly. The victims in many cases are less fortunate or in precision, the financially starving- the innocent poor. This indecent act has garnered lots of critics from the subjects in the same capacity as the prominent leaders and expatriates in various fields. Series of talks on the same are still being held to date, and as Robert Dale Owen puts it, we wonder whether one “can look forward to the future of our country (any country) and imagine any state of things, in which, with slavery still existing, they should be assured of permanent peace?” This kind of imaginary state cannot be imagined. With slavery still harbored in our countries, developments as well as various equality achievements are at stake.
The book, ‘Bradford Reader reveals many things children have to face. The situation in most cases calls for things that the children don’t share with adults. The mischievous acts include and not limited to being bullied by other teens and adults, loneliness and lack of love, as well as forced labor. Albeit the chances might not be equal to all, reading this book can inspire many children. According to Quebe Bradford, this can make them understand and appreciate living with “guardians, having a home where care is shown, refrigerator to eat from when you get ready to, some money in the pocket and being able to set food on the table” ( Bradford 470). After reading the book, I felt indebted and largely impelled to talk about the idea notion of forced labor and slavery especially one directed towards children.
The author dwells on the idea of mistreatment of children. The kind of inhumane treatments mentioned in most cases largely dwells on the less fortunate children within the society. They are subjected to torture of various forms, often lack the parental love, in case of the orphans, resulting to loneliness and worst of it being forced labor and slavery in their attempts to make both ends meet for their basic needs. The children are often left to survive at the helm of fate trying to make a quarter from a dime.
The question that comes begging in most cases remains, who is responsible for the appalling child slavery? In an attempt to solve this puzzle, I ponder on Martin Luther King’s quote in one of his speeches. “As long as the mind is enslaved, the body can never be free. Psychological freedom, a firm sense of self esteem, is the most powerful weapon against the long night of physical slavery.” (Martin Luther King, 1967) In the same context, I will use The United States as my case study. The U.S exhibits this form of slavery. The enslavement of the Americans is mind based. As Alexis puts it, “Americans are so enamored of equality that they would rather be equal in slavery than in freedom.” This valuation of freedom by Americans put them in a situation that they seem less mindful of individuals’ liberty and freedom while in their quest for equality for the country’s citizens.
In the book, ‘Live free and Starve by Chitra Divakaruni, the author majorly dwells in consumer goods. The goods have larger portions of the markets are in the United States, a country that values freedom and equality. Ironically, as the writer points, “many of the consumer goods sold in the United States –shoes, clothing, toys, and rugs-are made in countries whose labor practices do not meet the U.S standards of safety and fairness” (Divakaruni 466). The children put to forced labor in order to produce this merchandise has horrifying tales about their workforce contracts called “Indentures”.
According to Divakaruni, U.S Custom Service issued detention order on goods suspected of having been produced of forced on indentured child labor. “A bill to ban goods with any kind of child labor has been into congress every year since 1993. However, albeit these well intentioned efforts have since then been made, the dreadful consequences are more often directed to the people they are meant to protect. The villains usually relegate the effects to the victimized and not employing the well intentioned effects onto the people to whom the vice largely impede the notion behind the law’s effect. Child labor is a terrible and very unfortunate occurrence that our societies have to undergo. For instance, a child sold to slavery/child labor at the ages between four and seven with no way to be free from any form of abuse. The labor does not come with any good. In most case, it will take decades for the helpless children to buy back their freedom. The fines heaped on them whenever they make any mistake accumulate to a lifetime of mystery just as Divakaruni puts it. It pains so much that whenever “I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally,” just as Abraham Lincoln advocacy against slavery state.
According to an empirical analysis based on the experiment conducted in South America’s Bolivia and Venezuela, it appeared “labor force participation is non-trivial among those below the legal working age or are required to be in school. Working children contribute significantly to their total household income.” It continues by stating, “the fact that a child is working reduces his or her education attainment by about two years of schooling relative to the control group of non working children” (Rodgers & Standing 35-36). Grade repetition, a common phenomenon in Latin America are majorly blamed on this.
At least as judged from the reports in various daily presses, the issue of child labor is generating a lot of concerns in recent years. “According to International organizations such as ILO and UNICEF have helped sensitize public on opinions regarding working conditions of children. In the same measure, academic literatures have been very rich in analyzing the phenomenon of child labor and proposing various measures to deal with it.” (Psacharopoulos & Yang 290) This shows that the issue that has since been a bone of contention now experience address from various bodies. The feeble children can see the light at the end of the tunnel, however, dim the flickering rays would be. There is a sense of home to the oppressed children forced into labor fields at a tender age for their upkeep or for their families sake.
Granted the arguments, it’s evident that child labor has continued to devastate our societies. This vice has effectively affected many countries with major developed countries left to play a big brotherly role leading in exploiting their siblings-developing countries by importing goods produced from cheap forced labor. Despite maximization of profits, the children employed are meager wages and inhumane conditions deserve justice and freedom just as anybody around the world. The move by the non profit or other non governmental organizations as well as research individuals or bodies together with the governmental constraints to eliminate the malpractice should be supported by the majority in our societies to help realize justice to the oppressed children. Remember delayed justice is justice denied, and any form of punishment should be the justice for the unjust. Let us all stand up against child labor.
Works cited
G, Psacharopoulos, and Yang H. “Educational Attainment among Venezuelan Youth: An Analysis of Its Determinants. International Journal of Educational Development.” JSTOR (1991): 289-294
Divakaruni, Chitra. Live free and Starve
Rodgers G, Standing G “Economic Roles of Children in Low-Income Countries. Inter- national Labor Review” (1981): 31-47
