Running head: CHILDREN ARE MEANT TO LEARN NOT EARN

Children Are Meant to Learn Not Earn

Alexa Calderon
University of Texas at El Paso

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Abstract
The purpose of this report is to educate the reader on the very real issue of child
labor. Children are meant to learn and have fun, not to work excruciatingly hard. It goes
over seven sources of research that highlight what is currently going on and how kids
around the world are suffering. From India all the way to the United States, the problem
is prevalent. The research emphasizes the importance and necessity to change the laws in
place. Young girls and boys are born into lives with no hope for a better life. This report
highlights the need to better their quality of life. Everyone deserves a chance at life, but
not everyone receives it. These articles and videos promote the need to help in the 21st
century.

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Introduction
You see people smoking a cigarette, someone wearing a pair of tennis shoes, you
see something about Syria in the news, and someone with an iPhone in the palm of their
hand almost every day. What you dont see alongside these products is the fact that
children are working excruciatingly hard and long hours in order to provide you with
these commodities. The effects of war on children are hardly ever shown to the fullest
extent. The sad truth of the matter is that people dont want to face or expose the ugliness
that goes hand in hand with child abuse. However, the rather than hiding we must fight
for those who dont have a voice yet. The world is facing three main problems: the
harmful effects of nicotine and tobacco farming on children, kids in third world countries
that do not have adequate representation or protection against abuse, and the ugly truth
behind how some of the things we use daily are actually created.
Tobacco Farming and the Effects on Children
Tobacco has had a rocky history with its use of children as workers. It is currently
most prevalent in Indonesia. Tobacco companies are making money off the backs and the
health of Indonesian child workers. While Indonesia has strict child labor laws, it
suspiciously doesnt ban children from working on tobacco farms. Most kids start
working at age 13, are at risk of nicotine poisoning, and overall more action needs to be
taken. According to the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health,
tobacco workers are at "especially high risk" of developing nicotine poisoning or "green
tobacco sickness" from handling wet tobacco plants(Griffiths, CNN). These kids suffer
from symptoms like nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and headaches. Another problem from
tobacco farming is, Indonesia also has a major problem with child smoking. According

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to the country's Health Ministry, more than 3.9 million children aged between 10 and 14
become smokers every year(Griffiths, CNN). However, this problem is in our own
backyard as well. Child labor is common on tobacco farms in the United States, where
children are exposed to nicotine, toxic pesticides, and other dangers. American children
also have the same problem as the Indonesian children with the horrible side effects that
are caused by working on these farms. According to the Human Rights Watch (2014),
Many work 50 to 60 hours a week without overtime pay They may be exposed to
pesticides that are known neurotoxins The largest tobacco companies in the world
purchase tobacco grown in the US to make popular cigarette brands like Marlboro,
Newport, Camel, Pall Mall and others These companies can't legally sell cigarettes to
children, but they are profiting from legal child labor. The irony of the entire situation
with nicotine farming and American children is that we are a fully developed nation with
the same laws regarding child labor as a third world country and we cannot enforce them
and have made no advances in wanting to change them.
Kids Around the World With No Representation or Protection
Starting off with a very recent article regarding the crisis in Syria, we meet a
young boy, Ibrahim, who has been working 12 hours a day and 7 days a week in order to
provide for his family of nine. Ibrahim has asthma and is severely exhausted constantly,
but he must keep working illegally, because Syrians in Jordan cannot work unless they
pay a ridiculously expensive permit. According to Vice News (2016), Currently an
estimated 46 percent of Syrian boys and 14 percent of Syrian girls under the age of 16 are
putting in more than 44 hours a week for below average pay almost 3 million Syrian
children are not in school. The number of children that are not receiving an education is

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astronomical. It is time for everyone to realize that the effects of the war go farther than
todays adults, they are mainly effecting younger generations and we wont realize until
they get older and have no skillset or intellectual value. These children dont have a
chance and rising above poverty.
Moving onto the story of Lakshmi, a 13-year-old, who was abducted for four
years to work in peoples houses as a servant who was not allowed to rest or make
mistakes. Lakshmi didnt even know where she was, because her owners never allowed
her to leave the house. Not only was Lakshmi abducted, but she was also sexually
assaulted by her kidnappers at the age of 9. According to BBC news (2014), They
estimate that just from one particular area - Rangpura in Assam - 16 girls have been lost
in the last three to four years The cheapest and most vulnerable workforce is children girls in particular. So the demand for cheap labour is contributing to trafficking of
children from remote parts of India to big cities. The sad truth behind Indias growth is
human trafficking and child labor. Many families live in constant fear that their daughters
will be lost forever. Instead of changing laws, India prefers to hide their issue because
no one wants to deal with mistreated children. It is eye opening to see the atrocities that
are occurring globally in the 21st century. Even though we have come very far, we must
keep progressing.
Right across the border, Mexico has many problems with child labor as well.
However, Mexico is a bit different. According to the New York Times (2015), In a
landscape of fallow opportunities, income outweighs educationwhere children like
Angelica scale steep mountainsides to lance poppies and collect the gummy brown opium
that seeps out, there is an eerie similarity with Afghanistan. In both places, the near

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absence of the state allows the industry to flourish. This article highlights the fact that
the only opportunities the children have to make real money is to be used for poppy
harvesting. These children no longer care about their education, because it is no longer an
option. The country is so corrupt, that it in matters of wealth it favors those who dont
study. It is much easier for these children to make quick, big amounts of cash rather than
study and realize that no jobs are available in the state of Guerrero. The state is currently
run by a vast amount of drug dealers. This makes it near impossible for children growing
up with the violence to choose the correct path. The lack of beneficial options for these
kids stems from the lack of supervision and law enforcement that the government should
be providing.
The Ugly Truth Behind Our Products
Next time you reach for your smart phone, think about how it was made and how
it got to be in your privileged hands. According to Vice News (2016), Human rights
watchdog Amnesty International has accused several tech and auto industry giants of
turning a blind eye to child labor. In a damning report released on Tuesday, the
organization found that major brands, including Apple, Samsung, Sony, and Volkswagen,
were allowing cobalt mined by children into their products Amnesty also found that
many of the underage miners were malnourished and subjected to "physical abuse, sexual
exploitation and violence." Many of the children endured regular beatings at the hands of
security guards, who also extorted them for a cut of their earnings. The fact of the matter
is, if the companies that are producing our smartphones arent completely sure if child
abuse is prevalent in the production of their phones, the average person is less likely to
know where their things come from. These children are suffering greatly and we cant

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even help, because our demand and greed for new products of no actual importance is
just too great. We live in a society where everyone has to have the new iPhone or the new
Samsung Galaxy. Empathy must regain its ground in todays society.
Child labor is most common in the early stages of production. According to the
Human Rights Watch (2016), 168 million children are involved in child labor globally,
including 85 million who are engaged in hazardous work that jeopardizes their health or
safety. These children produce goods we regard as commonplace, such as gold, leather,
and clothing. They are exposed to harsh chemicals and work in hazardous conditions, but
the international standards are currently only voluntary. These kids are documented
saying they rather be at school full-time. Millions of children risk pain, sickness, injury,
and even death to produce goods and services for the global economy. These are
irrefutable facts that are just incredibly sad.
Conclusion
In spite of the fact that international laws are already in place, the must be
enforced not voluntary. One must understand that in some cases child labor has to happen
one way or another. If it happening at all, we must at least take on small step in regulating
it. We must take measures to ensure that operations respect human rights and do not
contribute to human rights abuse. In order to beat this, we must become educated on the
topic. People dont like to see children suffer, but the children are calling for help and it is
time to listen. So, next time you see and covet the latest thing, ask yourself what cost you
are truly willing to pay and if you trivial smart phone is worth the lack of quality of life a
child gets to have.

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Testi, E. Dwedar, M. (Producers). MADE IN THE USA: Chid Labor & Tobacco [Video
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