PRIMARY SOURCE DOCUMENTS

• INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION CONVENTION FIXING THE MINIMUM AGE FOR ADMISSION OF CHILDREN TO INDUSTRIAL EMPLOYMENT (1919) Children used in industrial employment in Europe and the United States troubled the ILO at the turn of the century.  Here is where they wanted children excluded from.  Pay careful note to differentiation made between "industry" and "commerce" and the exemptions for Japan.
  
• Declaration of Geneva (League of Nations 1924) A brief document, which has little substance, but many great ideas.
  
• UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS (United Nations G.A. res. 217A (III), U.N. Doc A/810 at 71December 1948) The United Nations major statement on the whole issue of human rights.  The United States has not ratified this document.  Many articles mention items that are part of the children's advocacy agenda, but the document is broad, not specific to just children except for Article 26. 
  
• Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery, 226 U.N.T.S. 3, entered into force April 30, 1957.   The trafficking of women and children is covered in this 1957 United Nations treaty which also gives a good summary of previous treaty and international law on the subject in the Preamble.
  
• UNITED NATIONS DECLARATION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD
  (Proclaimed by the Resolution I/86 of the General Assembly on 20 November 1959) Takes the sentiments of the 1924 Geneva Declaration and put some specific remedies to it. Takes into account protection, provision, and participation rights.  The timing of this document, coming at a point in history when many "third-world" countries were becoming free from colonial control, stresses many of the needs of those countries.
  
• Convention on the Rights of the Child (United Nations - 1989/1990)  The most comprehensive statement by the world community on the rights of the child.  When you read it, be mindful of the fact that only Somalia and the UNITED STATES have failed to ratify this document.
  
• IPEC (International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour) Action Against Child Labor 2000-2001  A very pointed and serious document which takes into account very recent issues of child trafficking and sexual exploitation as well as other labor issues. Updated for 2000-2001 progress reports.  A very serious document.  It is a PDF file--clicking the link above will open up Adobe Acrobat Reader if you have it installed on your computer.
  
• Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography (May 2000).   The issue of the sexual exploitation and trafficking for prostitution purposes is covered here.
  
• Australia---how it defines "child".  From the Australian Law Reform Commission.  This link will bring you to Paragraph 2.6 of the report.  Also scroll down to 2.25 for more legal aspects.
  
• United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice ("The Beijing Rules"), G.A. res. 40/33, annex, 40 U.N. GAOR Supp. (No. 53) at 207, U.N. Doc. A/40/53 (1985).  View sections 1 through 4 to focus on how juveniles should be handled in the justice system, then view the rest as to the rights afforded to them.
  
• Cornell University's Legal Information Institute.  The menu offers many United States Federal laws, some state laws, and some US Supreme Court Decisions on the subject of children.  Of particular interest is the link that shows the laws dealing with a child emancipation from their parents, what age, what rights they have....an unusual way to view the topic (from when the child becomes an adult).
  
• STOLEN DREAMS. A photographic essay documenting the plight of child labor around the world.  Sponsored by Harvard University's School of Public Health.
  
• CHILD LABOUR: WHAT'S TO BE DONE? Document for discussion at the Informal Tripartite Meeting at the Ministerial Level, International Labour Office, Geneva. First published June 1996.  (The ILO document listed above. There is another part to this document. Change the number 2 at the end of the web address to 1 and hit ENTER and the first part of that document comes up.)

WEB SITES

Click the links to be taken to their web pages. From there you can search their site, obtain mailing addresses and phone numbers, and contact them directly for how you can become involved.

• The International Labour Organization (ILO). If you wish to view photographic essays and posters of child labour to add a visual learning component, please click the link. The ILO welcomes their use and offers them freely as long as proper academic citation is used. For press releases, speeches, and information kits , the ILO has a wealth of opportunities to explore the topic. For the Report of the Committee on Child Labour (1999) please click the link, or you can go directly to the Child Labour homepage.
  
• The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). For more specific information on the Impact of Armed Conflict on Children , please click the link. The homepage menu is easy to navigate and contains many informational spots to investigate.Human Rights Watch. The specific site within for children's rights has links to child labour, juvenile justice, child soldiers, refugees, street children, and other important topics.
  
• Free the Children. This organization was started by a 12-year old Canadian boy in 1995 after the death of Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy who was sold in bondage as a carpet weaver and was murdered for speaking out against his condition. Using the navigation menu on the top of your screen, you can access the current campaigns which are smartly organized, well-researched and linked, and provide strong action components for students to get involved. This site is particularly geared to students because of its founder (who actively campaigns across the world). Resources include video clips that can be played on your computer.
  
• Save The Children. Emergency crisis relief programs are the hallmark of this group.
  
• Children's Rights Information Network. Web site has a thematic breakdown on the right side navigation menu.....good links to other sources especially on the September 19-21, 2001 Special Session on Children -- an unprecedented meeting of the UN General Assembly dedicated to the children and adolescents of the world.

BOOKS

• Archard, David, Children: Rights and Childhood, New York : Routledge, 1993.
  
• Colon, A. R. and P. A. Colon,  A History of Children: A Socio-Cultural Survey
  Across Millennia, Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001.

THEMES

Greenleaf, Barbara Kaye, Children Through the Ages : A History of Childhood, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1978.

Hawes, Joseph. and N. Roy Hines, American Childhood : A Research Guide and Historical Handbook, Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, 1985.

James, Allison and Alan Prout, eds., Constructing and Reconstructing childhood : New Directions in the Sociological Study of Childhood, New York : Falmer Press, 1990.