Child Labor in America

Until the close of the 19th century, many children in America were employed in farming, mills and mines or sold newspapers and fruits and vegetables on the streets. The crusaders of the Progressive Era believed child labour was an evil that maimed the children, exploited the poor and suppressed adult wages. The child should be in school till age 16, they demanded, in order to become good citizens. The battle for and against child labour was fought in the press as well as state and federal legislatures. Several federal efforts to ban child labour were struck down by the Supreme Court. An attempt to amend the Constitution to ban child labour failed to gain enough support. It took the Great Depression and New Deal legislation to pass the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (and receive the support of the Supreme Court). It is widely agreed that ending child labour and keeping children in school are measures of a nation's social advancement.