The Politics of Children’s Rights and Representation

Description

This open access edited volume investigates children and youth's deep entanglement in today's major global, national, and local transformations and processes: wherein they are not mere spectators and objects of transformations but instead actively shape them through various social, economic, and political representations. International contributions illuminate the problems that arise when children's rights and participation become a site of contestation and power over who represents whom, what, when, and where. The authors do not provide simple solutions, instead offering an understanding of the fundamental nature of these problems as founded in the application of rights and the nature of representation in modern society. Together, the authors emphasize that child representation must take into account the local and spatial context of how representations of children are discussed, as well as possible discrepancies between local, regional, national, and global processes. Acknowledgements Contents Notes on Contributors Chapter 1: Representing Children The Challenge of Children’s Representation Childhood Politics: From Rights and Participation to Representation Children’s Representation and the International Politics of Children’s Rights Children’s Representation in Times of Inequalities and Injustices Conclusion References Newspapers Part I: Childhood Politics: From Rights and Participation to Representation Chapter 2: Recognizing Children’s Rights: From Child Protection to Children’s Human Rights—The 1979 Swedish Ban on Corporal Punishment in Perspective Introduction Corporal Punishment and Abusive Treatment: Age, Class, and Gender—Regulations and Norms 1900–1930 State Responsibility: Punishment or Upbringing, Regulation and Prohibition 1930–1950 State Responsibility for Children in Institutional Care Versus Parental Rights 1950–1960 The Family Is Not Outside the Law: Parents’ Right to Corporal Punishment Is Increasingly Questioned The Human Rights of Children: The Official Government Report In Conclusion, Particular or Universal Rights References Chapter 3: Adults in Charge: The Limits of Formal Child Participatory Processes for Societal Transformation Introduction From Objects to Subjects of International Social Policy: A Turning Point Influenced by the Convention on the Rights of the Child? Decentring the Adult in Child Participatory Processes for Transformational Change Taking a Long Historical View to Understand the Transformational Potential of Children’s Participation: The Case of the Soweto Uprising of 1976 Conclusion References Chapter 4: Children’s Participation in Their Right to Education: Learning from the Delhi High Court Cases, 1998–2001 Introduction From Children’s ‘Voices’ to ‘Citizenship’: Situating the Right to Education Within Existing Conceptualizations Around Children’s Participation Delhi High Court Cases, 1998–2001 Conclusion References Chapter 5: Representing the Child Before the Court Introduction Section 1 Understanding Children’s Access to Justice: From an “Artificially Constructed Incapacity” to Effective Legal Assistance Does “Child-Friendly” Bring More Justice to Children? Modeling Children’s Access to Justice Section 2 Professional Legal Representation as a Fundamental Part of Access to Justice Lăcătuş v. Switzerland: Bridging the Local to the Global Lawyering for Children: Protection or Redress? Children’s Representation as a Local and Global Practice Children’s Representation and the State: Socio-economic Rights or Civil Liberties? Lawyering for Children as Interpretation, Translation and Transmission Epistemological Challenges of Power Delegation in Courts Conclusions: Toward a Mutually Significant Alliance? Notes References Part II: Children’s Representation and the International Politics of Children’s Rights Chapter 6: ‘Could It Be That They Do Not Want to Hear What We Have to Say?’ Organised Working Children and the International Politics and Representations of Child Labour Introduction Shifting Priorities in Child Labour Policy Reconsidering Convention 138 Smokey Mountain Targeting the Intolerable Discussion: The Paradox of Institutionalisation “We Do Not Want Them to Represent Us” Working Children Get Organised The Kundapur Meeting From Amsterdam to Oslo Discussion: The Paradox of a Children’s Right to Participation Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour The Global March Against Child Labour The Worst Forms of Child Labour Discussion: Two Lovers Locked in Romance Concluding Remarks Notes References Chapter 7: “Children Without Childhood”: Representations of the Child-Soldier as an International Emergency Introduction Within Boundaries: Banning the Use of the Child-Soldier The Governed Childhood and Its Many Exclusions: (Re)presenting the Pathological Child-Soldier Final Thoughts References Chapter 8: Children’s Representation in the Transnational Mirror Maze Introduction A World Coalition Against Child Soldiering The Children of the World vs. Climate Change How to Escape the Mirror Maze? Conclusion References Part III: Children’s Representation in Times of Inequalities and Injustices Chapter 9: Deliberative Disobedience as a Strategy for Claiming Rights and Representation in the Family: The Case of Accra’s Street Children Introduction Rights and Representation in the Context of Urban Informality Researching Urban Informal Childhoods A Quest for Representation and Rights Assertiveness and Disregard for Parental Authority The Conjunction of Children’s Remittances, Rights, Representation and Authority Conclusion References Chapter 10: Combatting Child Poverty in the Childhood Moratorium: A Representational Lens on Children’s Rights Introduction Child Poverty and Children’s Rights: A Representational Approach The Childhood Moratorium as the Political Domain for Representational Claims Representational Claims in the Childhood Moratorium: Differences Between Children and Parents Researching Parental Perspectives on Child Poverty Child Poverty: An Educational Issue? Child Poverty and Leisure Time Child Poverty and Parental Support Child Poverty and Education Child Poverty: A Social Issue? Child Poverty and Housing Child Poverty and Health Child Poverty and Material Support Conclusion References Chapter 11: Child Figurations in Youth Climate Justice Activism: The Visual Rhetoric of the Fridays for Future on Instagram Globality, Digital Observation, and Participatory Culture Children’s Political Representation and Climate Activism: Literature Review Uneven Possibilities of Image Events: The Child Speaking Truth to Power Childhood Figurations of the Global Mass-movement Alternative Childhood Figurations: Mass-by-Proxy and Globality-by-Proxy Childhood Figurations of Competence and Assuming Responsibility Childhood Figurations of the Creative Play of Activism Conclusion: Climate Action When There Is No Time to Grow Up References Chapter 12: Political Strategies of Self-representation: The Case of Young Afghan Migrants in Sweden Introduction The Political Representation of Children and Youth The Governing Power of Representing Children and Youth Political Strategies of Self-representation: The Case of Young Migrants in Sweden Rejecting Previous Forms of Representation Establishing, Shaping, and Controlling Identities Creating (New) Political Space Making Opponents and Allies Conclusion References Chapter 13: Political Representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Youth in Australia Introduction Theorising Childhood as Risk and Renewal to the Demos Childhood in Colonial Contexts: The Infantilization of Indigenous Peoples Representing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children as Sources of Risk Conclusion: Renewal and the Transformative Potential of Indigenous Children’s Representation References Index