persuasive essay on child labor

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How to Write a Child Labor Essay: Outline, Tips, & Titles

Child labor is a problem in both economically advanced and developing countries. That is why it makes a good topic for essays and research.

If you’re writing an essay on child labor, be ready for the horrifying information. We prepared an explanation of the problem, essay topics, and outlines. You can also find 200+ word essay samples in this article.

• 📚 Child Labor Essay Explained
• ✍️ Argumentative Essay Writing
• 🗣️ Persuasive Essay Writing
• 🔐 Problem-Solution Essay Writing

🚸 49 Child Labor Essay & Research Topics

📚 preparing for an essay on child labor.

Let’s begin with an overview of the problem.

In this passage, we will discuss how the problem appeared and developed. Then we will identify the current issues. You can find the information that you can use in your child exploitation essay. Next, begin your research on the topic.

What Are the Main Issues of Child Labor?

Child labor became a global issue during the industrial revolution. It created a demand for an additional workforce. To the present day, this question remains unsolved and puts millions of children in danger.

Let’s define the major themes that you can discuss in a child labor essay:

• Interfering with studies. Children who work full-time are not able to attend school and do their homework. Accordingly, a lack of education makes it hard for them to find better jobs. Kids need to do their best to receive as much knowledge as possible to be intellectually developed.
• Harm to physical and mental health. Working conditions are never at the appropriate level. An unhealthy environment leads to various diseases. Besides, some children work in the sex industry, which harms their mental stability.
• Some of the children become slaves. It involves trafficking and sale of children , forced labor, and all forms of slavery. There is nobody to take care of these children. Therefore, some of them end up wandering the streets.

Sources for a Child Labor Essay

Make sure you use credible information for all of your essays. Avoid such sources as social media, forums, and Wikipedia.

How to find sources for your child labor argument essay?

Here is our selection of reliable sources:

✍️ Child Labor Argumentative Essay Writing Guide

An argumentative essay is a perfect match for this issue. It gives a variety of research topics and information for solid arguments.

In a child labor argumentative essay, you need to convince that your point has a right to exist. You should use some evidence to support it. You also need to mention opposing opinions and explain them. This type of paper looks like a written debate. We will give some writing tips and help you to outline your work.

Child Labor Essay Outline

Before writing, you need to do prior research to find a topic. Your topic should be controversial, so there is an alternative point of view. If there is enough credible information on the chosen topic, you can continue. If not, try to broaden or change your primary focus.

1. Child Labor Essay Introduction

The introduction is where you need to provide the background information and a short overview of what will be in the following paragraphs. Include all the explanations and sources that might be hard to understand.

You can start with a hook introducing surprising information or asking a provocative question. Just make sure that it doesn’t break the general logic of your assignment.

Define why the topic is important and why the readers should pay attention to the issue. Introduce the point of view that you will prove in the paper.

2. Child Labor Essay Thesis Statement & Body

It is better to begin writing an essay with this part. Your thesis statement should be the last sentence of your introduction paragraph.

• What should you include there?
• Your position on the issue,
• The strongest arguments that prove it,
• A counterargument that opposes it.

Provide arguments and counterarguments. In other words, you have to make a list of the reasons that prove and rebut your opinion. Introduce the evidence that supports your and opposing points and explain its importance.

Each paragraph should revolve around a particular idea. You can include a transition sentence at the end of each passage. Do that if you feel it will bring more logic to your writing.

3. Child Labor Essay Conclusion

In this paragraph, provide a summary of the evidence. Don’t introduce any new information. It is better to synthesize what you’ve mentioned before. Make sure you answered the questions that you stated in the introduction.

Explain the significance of your point and research. Suggest ways of further research and investigation of the topic.

It is also the right moment to review your essay. If you see that your conclusion is not logical enough, return to your argumentation line. It will help you to identify the flows and fix the conclusion.

14 Child Labor Essay Titles

Here are some title ideas for a good argumentative essay about child labor:

• Child abuse and labor as modern society challenge.
• Should the minimum age of employment in the United States be changed? What are the risks of such a decision?
• Can work be a positive experience for children of school age? What are the risks and benefits?
• Does work influence school performance among children and teenagers?
• What can be considered “light work” when it comes to children’s employment?
• Can we control the online employment of children? For example, blogging, running a YouTube channel, etc.
• Are bad working conditions in India the leading cause of diseases among children? What are the main risks?
• Why it is important to rase societal awareness of the child labor problem.
• Is it possible for adolescents to successfully combine work and studies?
• Do household chores make children more responsible? Can it be counted as work?
• Can child domestic work be considered family violence?
• How does work at a young age affect future earnings potential? Do these children become more or less successful?
• Should there be a minimum age requirement for working on small farms and family businesses?
• Effects of child labor in farming on children.

Child Labor Essay Examples #1

Check this excellent argumentative essay sample about child labor.

Topic: Should there be a minimum age requirement for work on small farms and family businesses? In the United States, half a million child farmworkers work in fields . Some start working full time even before they reach the age of ten. There should be a minimum age regulation of 15 years for children working for their parents. Children are less endurant in physical work, and they can’t be productive at school. Besides, chemicals used in agriculture are dangerous for health. Children are less physically developed than adults. Also, children need more time to recover from challenging physical activities. That is why they need to work not more than three hours a day. And from at least 15 years to handle the physical challenges. Studies need time and effort. Children engaged with hard physical work can’t get enough time to study and rest. Working instead of doing homework is the worst decision for school performance. Children should have an opportunity to devote enough time to their studies. Else they won’t be able to access better jobs in the future. Pesticides increase the risk for cancer in children. It includes leukemia, acute leukemia, and lymphoma risks. Children who work in agriculture are three times more likely to get cancer than adults exposed to carcinogenic effects. This makes children’s health more vulnerable to fatal outcomes. In conclusion, children’s work in agriculture should be restricted under the age of 15. Hard work affects children’s physical development, school performance, and health. It is vital to control children’s employment even if they work at their parents’ farms.

🗣️ Persuasive Essay on Child Labor Writing Guide

Writing a persuasive essay is also a good opportunity to develop this topic. Try to choose a catchy title that grabs your reader’s attention from the beginning. You can raise important questions which involve morality and ways of fighting the problem. Also, you can assess and propose strategies that can help to eliminate the issue.

In a persuasive essay, you need to convince your readers that you are right. To do this, you need to gather some logical evidence and prove your point using it. It involves less thorough academic research than an argumentative essay. However, you need to find a way to reach your readers.

There is a five-paragraph structure in this essay . A thesis statement plays a key role. You need to explain your point of view on the issue there. Then, provide the supporting evidence and the background information using persuasive language.

Child Labor Essay Introduction

There are three main parts that you need to include in the introduction:

• Hook. Make your first sentence exciting. A rhetorical question, fact, or mystery are all excellent choices. You can use descriptive words to make your readers picture everything.
• Background information. Use it to make your readers familiar with the problem.
• Definitions. Explain everything that might be uncertain for your readers.
• Thesis statement. Introduce your main argument. It will be the roadmap of your argumentation in the essay.

Child Labor Essay Thesis Statement & Body

Always make sure that the logic of your essay follows your thesis statement. If it doesn’t, consider rewriting the thesis or adjusting the arguments. Each of the paragraphs should represent one idea that appears in the thesis statement.

• Here are some additional tips on writing a persuasive essay on child labor: use empathy – target the audience’s emotions to prove your point; know both sides – research what you have to disagree with; be passionate about your topic – it’s easier to defend what you believe in.

Child Labor Essay Conclusion

Summarize your writing and paraphrase the child labor thesis statement . Mention all of your arguments again and explain why they make your opinion the only correct option. Some readers will remember only this part of the paper, so do your best to make the last impression. You can also call people to action at the end of the essay.

Read your essay once again in a couple of hours. Ask yourself these two questions:

• Would the writing convince me if I were the reader?
• What can I do to make it more convincing?

Make final adjustments after it.

15 Child Labor Essay Titles

These topics are perfect both for persuasive essays and speeches . Pick your title from our selection:

• Why shouldn’t we buy goods whose production involves child labor?
• All working children should receive free quality education and have access to schools.
• Child poverty in Canada as a reason for child labor.
• Girls’ education is equally important. We shouldn’t force girls to do household chores instead of homework.
• Why children’s employment under the age of 14 should be banned?
• Child abuse and labor effects on adult survivors.
• How can working children study and provide money to their families at the same time?
• Child labor deprives many children of education. Does child labor cause poverty from a long-term perspective?
• Child abuse and labor in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
• What is the main issue of child labor that should concern people the most?
• How does work affect children’s physical and mental development?
• The effects of child abuse and child labor.
• Should Amish children obey the same laws on children’s employment as other American citizens?
• What role does child labor play in Hindi culture and religion?
• Domestic violence and child domestic work as a form of child abuse.

Child Labor Essay Examples #2

Topic: Why shouldn’t we buy goods whose production involves child labor? Such industries as fast fashion take advantage of children. Children work in all the stages of the cotton supply chain. That is why fast fashion brands are so cheap. We shouldn’t buy clothes whose production involves child labor. These children are underpaid, suffer bad conditions, and can’t defend themselves against employers. Children don’t demand high salaries and receive less money as a result. For example, children who work in cottonseed farms in India earn less than $1 a day . Their working day can last up to 12 hours, making it 8 cents/hour. Buying cheap clothes might be pleasant, but we should know its price. The cotton industry exposes children to dangerous chemicals and machinery. They have to carry heavy loads and work in extreme temperatures. The food supply is not enough, and the working hours exceed the limit. Employers generally see children as more obedient workers who cannot stand for their rights. It results in worse working conditions, longer hours, and less attention to children’s comfort. Buying cheap clothes encourages cotton industries to involve more children in their production cycles. In conclusion, we shouldn’t buy fast fashion goods because it encourages companies to produce more clothes that involve child labor. Business models of such companies make their products not last long, making us buy more goods and employers hire more children. Instead, we need to buy clothes of better quality that will serve us longer. We also need to make sure that the production chain of the clothes we buy doesn’t involve any forms of underpaid jobs in severe conditions.

🔐 Problem Solution Essay about Child Labor

Child labor is generally one big problem that needs a solution. That is why you can write a very good essay on this topic. But better focus on specific issues rather than on the general problem.

In this passage, we prepared some tips, an outline, and a selection of child labor essay titles for a problem solution essay.

For this type of essay, there are two ways of building the argumentation line: chain method & block method . Both have a five-paragraph structure, but the logic might differ.

A problem-solution essay about child labor aims to identify the specific problem and offer logical solutions. It should encourage the readers to take a particular course of action.

First of all, you need to describe the background of the problem. Write about the situation and how it evolved. Then explain why it does require a solution. Briefly describe the contents of the following paragraphs. If there are subtopics, mention all of them.

Finish your introduction with a thesis statement. If needed, provide explanations or some definitions. Do it only if you know that your audience needs some clarification.

At first, you need to research the topic and narrow it down to a particular problem. Then prepare the best solutions, and describe why they are feasible. As your thesis statement should briefly describe the body paragraphs, make sure they don’t contradict each other.

• When presenting specific solutions, make sure they are logical. You need to convince your readers that the solutions you offer are the best course of action.

Make a summary of the main points of the body paragraphs. Restate the thesis and evaluate the suggested solutions. Answer all the questions you have mentioned in the introductory paragraph.

You can include unsolved problems and unanswered questions in the final sentences.

After finishing the conclusion, return to your child labor essay introduction and body. Proofread the spelling and grammar. Make sure that the writing is logical and solid.

Child Labor Essay Titles

Take a look at our selection of problem-solution essay titles:

• How to change labor laws in developing countries so children can combine school and work?
• Edo State is the most popular spot for human trafficking in Africa. How to stop child trafficking in Nigeria?
• Addressing the issue of the child poverty and labor.
• How to make education a priority for children and their parents in African countries?
• How to stop Indian families from forcing their children to work?
• Child labor and child abuse: The role of nurses .
• How to break the cycle of poverty that child labor creates?
• What are the ways to prevent child exploitation in agriculture in Latin America?
• Breaking the cycle of family violence that working children often face.
• How to prevent children from engaging in the worst forms of child work in the Philippines?
• What can parents with low income do if they don’t want their children to work?
• Nurse’s role in preventing child abuse and child labor .
• What should be the punishment for employers who hire children in hazardous positions?
• How to define “child labor” correctly so the concept is never misunderstood?

Child Labor Essay Examples #3

Topic: How to break the cycle of poverty that child labor creates? Child labor deprives children of obtaining proper education, which is the leading cause of global poverty. They miss classes or don’t attend school at all. That is why it becomes harder for them to find well-paid jobs. To break the cycle of poverty, we should ensure children have access to schools. Volunteering in developed countries can help with that. Building more schools means that children from remote areas will have an opportunity to visit them. Providing access to the Internet to encourage online education is also a solution to this problem. While both methods are pricey, it is an investment that will pay off when these children start working. People from developed countries can play a significant role in eliminating child labor. Volunteer teachers can educate children and train local teachers. Encouraging volunteers to spend a couple of months in developing countries can help a lot. Gap year students and young specialists can take part in projects and initiatives to help end child labor. Parents often force their kids to work because they don’t have enough financial resources. The government needs to ensure funding for families, especially those which consist of many children. Such financial support can include stipends for low income. Parents can send their children to school knowing they will be financially safe. Education is the key to ending child labor. That is why countries need to make it a priority to ensure their economic growth. All the investments made for equal access to education and financial support to families will result in better job opportunities for children.

And here is our additional selection of titles for a child labor essay:

• What are the causes and effects of child labor in Asia?
• How are child labor laws violated in European countries?
• In what ways does globalization encourage child labor?
• History of child labor in western Europe.
• Research into human trafficking: Children as victims of human trafficking and forced child labor.
• Child slavery in the southern states in the 19 th century.
• How the Great Depression changed the situation with child labor?
• Which organizations are the most successful in fighting child labor?
• Which big corporations use child labor as a cheap workforce?
• Human trafficking as modern form of slavery: The effects on children.
• How did feminists contribute to child labor law adjustments?
• In what forms does child labor exist in the US?
• How does working from an early age affect mental health?
• Are there any improvements concerning child labor in Asia?
• How does child labor affect the economy of a country?
• Child Exploitation, Trafficking and Their Threats.
• Who has the power to restrict child labor fully?
• Can domestic work be considered child labor in the United States?
• What was Franklin D. Roosevelt’s political course regarding child labor?
• What conditions and working hours are acceptable to children?
• Legal systems, labor relations and regulatory practices related to child labor.
• What diseases are likely to affect children working in tobacco fields?
• How to support activism against child labor in the United States?
• Which cultures encourage children to earn money to support their families?
• How have child labor laws changed in the last 20 years?
• Negative effects of child abuse and child labor.
• Is it possible to end child labor completely?
• How Has Slavery Shaped the Lives of Children of Color in the US?
• The difference between southern and western states regarding child labor in the 20 th century.
• What is Camella Teoli’s impact on activism against child labor?
• Child slavery and prostitution in the state of Georgia.
• What was Woodrow Wilson’s position regarding child labor?
• Child labor during World War II in the United States.
• Why is it easier for employers to repress children’s rights?
• The influences of child labor on the child’s life.
• The history of child labor in Eastern European cultures.
• Fast Fashion brand’s impact on ecology and child labor.
• Poverty and sex trafficking among children: Qualitative systematic review.
• Can technological progress eliminate child labor in Asian countries?
• How does the economic inequality of countries affect the child labor situation?
• Child labor during the industrial revolution and excessive working hours.
• Employment law: Reforms necessary to change child labor laws.
• In what cases does working experience help children to become more successful?
• What is the connection between racism and child labor?
• Which countries are the least successful in fighting child labor?
• What are the long-term outcomes of child labor regarding education?
• Child trafficking: The use of children for forced labor and sex slavery.
• Why should we change parents’ mindsets when it comes to child labor?
• What is the current child labor situation in the United States?

Thank you for reading this article till the end!

Now you are ready to write a perfect essay on child labor. Let’s revise what we have learned today:

• How to prepare to write a child labor essay.
• How to choose credible sources.
• How to write an argumentative essay.
• How to write a persuasive essay.
• How to write a problem and solution essay.

Also, don’t forget to proofread your essay and return to this article once you have finished your work. Good luck!

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Child Labor Essay: Thesis, Examples, & Writing Guide [2024]

Children have always been apprentices and servants all over human history. However, the Industrial Revolution increased the use of child labor in the world. It became a global problem that is relevant even today when such employment is illegal.

The principal causes of child labor are as follows:

• Poverty, as kids have to work to support their families.
• Lack of access to education or its low quality.
• Culture, as some countries encourage kids to earn their pocket money.
• The growth of a low-paying informal economy.

The information you will find in this article can help you write a good child labor essay without any problems. Our professional writers gathered facts and tips that can help you with a paper on this topic. Nail your essay writing about child labor: thesis statement, introduction, and conclusion.

• 📜 How to Write
• ❓ Brief History
• ⚖️ Laws Today

🔗 References

📜 child labor argument essay: how to write & example.

Let’s start with tips on writing a child labor essay. Its structure depends on the type of your assignment : argumentative, persuasive, for and against child labor essay.

There’s nothing new in the essay structure: introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. However, you should pay close attention to your thesis statement about child labor as the subject is quite delicate.

Below you’ll find the essential information on what to write in your assignment:

• The introduction may present the general meaning of the term “child labor.” In this part of your child labor essay, you may say that child labor means the work of children that aims at exploiting and harming them.
• The thesis statement should reveal your position on the issue. It’s the central idea of the paper. It may sound like “Not every kind of child labor is supposed to be exploitive.” Think about the phrasing of your child labor thesis statement.
• What are the reasons for the issue today? In this part of your essay, you have to present why child labor is widely-spread nowadays. Are there some positive factors for it?
• What jobs can be done by children? Give a list of possible careers, and present short descriptions of the duties children have to fulfill. Explain your job choice.
• How can we reduce child labor? Elaborate on why taking care of our young generation is crucial. What would you offer to reduce child labor?
• The conclusion of child labor essays should summarize everything that was said in the body. It should present the final idea that you have come up with while conducting your research. Make a point by approving or disapproving your thesis statement about child labor. Don’t repeat the central idea, but rather restate it and develop. If you’re not sure about what to write, you can use a summary machine to help you out.

We hope that now you have some ideas on what to write about. Nevertheless, if you still need some help with writing , you can check the child labor essay example:

For more facts to use in your essay, see the following sections.

❓ Brief History of Child Labor

The involvement of child labor became increasingly popular during the Industrial revolution . The factories ensured the growth in the overall standard of living, a sharp drop in the mortality rate in cities, including children. It caused unprecedented population growth. And with the help of machines, even physically weak people could work.

Operating power-driven machines did not require high qualification, but the child’s small height often was a better option. They could be installed quite closely to save the factory space. Some children worked in coal mines, where adults couldn’t fit.

Thus, child labor has become an indispensable and integral part of the economy.

Even special children’s professions were formed. For example, there were scavengers and scribes in the cotton factories:

• Scavengers had to be small and fast. They crawled all day under the spinning looms, collected the fallen pieces of cotton, inhaled cotton dust, and dodged the working mechanisms.
• Scribes walked around the shop and sorted the threads that ran along with the machine. It was estimated that the child was passing about 24 miles during the working day.

Needless to say, that child labor conditions were far from perfect. The situation began to change in the early 1900s during social reform in the United States. The restricting child labor laws were passed as part of the progressive movement.

During the Great Depression , child labor issues raised again because of lacking open jobs to adults. The National Industrial Recovery Act codes significantly reduced child labor in America.

What about today?

Child labor today in wealthy countries accounts for 1% of the workforce. At the same time, according to the International Labor Organization (ILO) , the highest ranges of working children are in Africa (32%), Asia (22%), and Latin America (17%).

🧒 Causes of Child Labor

Speaking about child labor, you should understand the factors that lead to children employment:

• Poverty . According to ILO, it is one of the significant causes of child labor. Children have to work to support their families. Sometimes up to 40% of a household income is the child’s salary.
• Lack of access to education . An absence of school or its distant location and low quality of education affect children around the globe. Unaffordable tuition in local schools drives children to harmful labor.
• Culture . In some developing countries, it is common for children and adolescents to help their parents in a family business. They earn their pocket money because people believe such work allows children to develop skills and build character. Other cultures value girls’ education less than boys, so girls are pushed to provide domestic services.
• The growth of a low-paying informal economy. This macroeconomic factor explains acceptability and demand for child labor.

⚖️ Child Labor Laws Today

Don’t forget to mention current labor laws and regulations in your child labor assignment. You can mention slavery and human trafficking linked to the issue even today. You may refer to international laws or analyze legislative acts in different countries.

For example, the Fair Labor Standards Act determines age restrictions, jobs allowed for teenagers, and necessary paperwork.

Other acts, programs, and initiatives you should mention are:

• Convention on the Rights of the Child
• Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
• Minimum Age Convention
• Medical Examination of Young Persons (Industry) Convention
• Australia’s and UK’s Modern Slavery Acts
• National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2009-2020
• International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor
• Child Labor Deterrence Act of 1993

When writing about child laws against child labor, you may also explore the best and worst countries for children’s work conditions.

You may also mention child labor incidents:

• UNICEF’s report on using enslaved children in cocoa production.
• Child labor in Africa’s cobalt, copper, and gold mines.
• GAP, Zara, Primark, H&M’s products made with cotton, which may have been picked by children. You can also find extra information on companies that use child labor.
• Child labor in silk weaving factories.

Child Labor Essay Examples

• Child labor’s negative impact on human development . 
• Child labor and social worker interventions . 
• Child labor in the fashion industry . 
• Child labor, its forms, and disputable issues . 
• Ethics in business: child labor in the chocolate industry.  
• Samsung and child labor: business ethics case . 
• Child labor’s role in westernization and globalization . 

Child Labor Essay Topics

• Analyze the connection between poverty and child labor. 
• Discuss the reasons for the high trafficking of children rates.  
• Explain why child labor is among topical issues in the modern world.  
• What can be done to reduce child trafficking rates?  
• Explore the ways labor unions help to fight child labor.   
• Describe the child labor laws around the world and evaluate their effectiveness.  
• Analyze the cases of child exploitation in sweatshops in developing countries. 
• Discuss the social issues connected with child labor.   
• Examine the impact of child labor on children’s physical and mental health.  
• The role of UNICEF in the abolition of child labor and exploitation.  
• Child trafficking as a primary human rights issue.  
• The absence of adequate punishment is the reason for increased child slavery rates.
•  Analyze if current measures to prevent child exploitation are sufficient enough.  
• Discuss how social media platforms facilitate child trafficking.   
• Examine the social impact of child exploitation and trafficking .  
• Describe how the attitude towards child labor depends on the specifics of the country’s culture.  
• Explore how Zara’s use of child labor influenced its public image.  
• What organizations deal with commercial child exploitation prevention?  
• What can a healthcare professional do to help the victims of child exploitation?  
• Analyze the urgency of creating an effective program for the recovery of child trafficking victims .  
• Discuss the laws regulating child labor in different countries.  
• Explain the connection between the level of education in the country and child labor rates.  
• The role of parents in the success of child labor and exploitation prevention.  
• Explore the history of child labor.  
• Can labor be the way to teach children about basic life skills?  
• The disastrous effect of child trafficking on the mental health of its victims.  
• Discuss the problems connected with child trafficking and exploitation investigation.
• Examine the cases of using child soldiers in modern armed conflicts.  
• Analyze the role of international organizations in saving child soldiers.  
• The use of abducted children as frontline soldiers in Uganda.  
• What can be done to overcome the issue of child soldiers in the near future?  
• Discuss what fashion brands can do to prevent the use of child labor in overseas sweatshops.
• Explain why young workers are more vulnerable to exploitation compared to adult workers.
•  Explore the issue of child labor and exploitation in the Industrial Age.  
• Analyze how child labor affects the education of children . 
• Describe the business ethics of child labor.  
• Who is responsible for the use of child labor at tea plantations?  
• Examine the reasons for using child labor in mining in the 19 th century. 
• Employing child labor as one of the most widespread violations of children’s rights .
• Discuss the motives that push children to participate in labor.  

How old were you when you got your first job? Was it hard? Share with us your experience and advice in the comments below! Send this page to those who might require help with their child labor essay.

• Child Labor Issues and Challenges: NIH
• Child Labor: World Vision Australia
• Essay Structure: Harvard University
• Child Labor: Human Rights Watch
• Child Labor: Laws & Definition: History.com
• Child Labor: Our World in Data
• History of Child Labor in the United States, Part 1: Little Children Working: US Bureau of Labor Statistics
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Essay on Child Labour for Students and Children

500+ words essay on child labour.

Child labour is a term you might have heard about in news or movies. It refers to a crime where children are forced to work from a very early age. It is like expecting kids to perform responsibilities like working and fending for themselves. There are certain policies which have put restrictions and limitations on children working.

The average age for a child to be appropriate to work is considered fifteen years and more. Children falling below this age limit won’t be allowed to indulge in any type of work forcefully. Why is that so? Because child labour takes away the kids opportunity of having a normal childhood, a proper education , and physical and mental well-being. In some countries, it is illegal but still, it’s a far way from being completely eradicated.

Causes of Child Labour

Child Labour happens due to a number of reasons. While some of the reasons may be common in some countries, there are some reasons which are specific in particular areas and regions. When we look at what is causing child labour, we will be able to fight it better.

Firstly, it happens in countries that have a lot of poverty and unemployment . When the families won’t have enough earning, they put the children of the family to work so they can have enough money to survive. Similarly, if the adults of the family are unemployed, the younger ones have to work in their place.

Moreover, when people do not have access to the education they will ultimately put their children to work. The uneducated only care about a short term result which is why they put children to work so they can survive their present.

Furthermore, the money-saving attitude of various industries is a major cause of child labour. They hire children because they pay them lesser for the same work as an adult. As children work more than adults and also at fewer wages, they prefer children. They can easily influence and manipulate them. They only see their profit and this is why they engage children in factories.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Eradication of Child Labour

If we wish to eradicate child labour, we need to formulate some very effective solutions which will save our children. It will also enhance the future of any country dealing with these social issues . To begin with, one can create a number of unions that solely work to prevent child labour. It should help the children indulging in this work and punishing those who make them do it.

Furthermore, we need to keep the parents in the loop so as to teach them the importance of education. If we make education free and the people aware, we will be able to educate more and more children who won’t have to do child labour. Moreover, making people aware of the harmful consequences of child labour is a must.

In addition, family control measures must also be taken. This will reduce the family’s burden so when you have lesser mouths to feed, the parents will be enough to work for them, instead of the children. In fact, every family must be promised a minimum income by the government to survive.

In short, the government and people must come together. Employment opportunities must be given to people in abundance so they can earn their livelihood instead of putting their kids to work. The children are the future of our country; we cannot expect them to maintain the economic conditions of their families instead of having a normal childhood.

{ “@context”: “https://schema.org”, “@type”: “FAQPage”, “mainEntity”: [{ “@type”: “Question”, “name”: “What causes child labour?”, “acceptedAnswer”: { “@type”: “Answer”, “text”: “Child Labour is caused by many factors. The most important one is poverty and illiteracy. When people barely make ends meet, they put their children to work so they can have food two times a day.”} }, { “@type”: “Question”, “name”: “How can we prevent child labour?”, “acceptedAnswer”: { “@type”: “Answer”, “text”:”Strict measures can prevent child labour. Unions should be made to monitor the activities of child labour. Education must be made free to enroll more and more kids in school. We must also abolish child trafficking completely to save the children.”} }] }

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Child Labour Persuasive Speech (Free Essay Example)

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Ladies and Gentlemen, Imagine a childhood without the joy of learning in a classroom, without the carefreeness of playing with friends, and without the nurturing environment of a loving family. Now, picture that same childhood spent in hazardous conditions, deprived of education, health, and basic human rights. This is the harsh reality for an estimated 152 million children worldwide who are subjected to child labour. It is imperative that we, as a global society, take a decisive stand against child labour and advocate for every child’s right to a safe, healthy, and fulfilling childhood. Child labour is a scourge that not only robs children of their youth but also perpetuates the cycle of poverty. When children are forced into labour, they miss out on essential educational opportunities that could lift them and their families out of poverty. Education is a fundamental human right and a crucial driver of economic and social development. By ensuring that children are in school rather than in factories, fields, or mines, we equip them with the knowledge and skills necessary for their future. Investment in education is investment in the future prosperity and stability of communities and nations. Moreover, child labour often exposes children to dangerous and exploitative working conditions that can have lasting physical and psychological impacts. Many children endure long hours of strenuous work in environments that pose significant risks to their health and well-being. This not only stunts their physical and cognitive development but also damages their mental health, creating trauma that can persist into adulthood. Protecting children from such harm is not just a moral obligation; it is a requirement for nurturing a compassionate and humane society. To eradicate child labour, we must adopt a multi-faceted approach. This includes the enforcement of stricter regulations and laws to prevent the exploitation of children, coupled with initiatives to alleviate poverty so that families do not feel compelled to send their children to work. Corporate responsibility also plays a critical role. Companies must ensure their supply chains are free from child labour and adhere to ethical standards. Furthermore, raising awareness about the detrimental effects of child labour and mobilizing community support is essential in fostering a culture that values and protects the rights of children. In conclusion, the fight against child labour is a fight for the fundamental rights and dignity of every child. It demands our collective action and unwavering commitment. By advocating for better laws, supporting education, and fostering ethical business practices, we can create a world where no child is deprived of their right to a childhood. Let us stand together and ensure that every child has the opportunity to grow, learn, and flourish in a safe and nurturing environment.

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77 Child Labour Essay Topics & Examples

Researching the subject of child labour for an essay, you will see that it’s quite challenging to write about. That’s why we’ve listed useful topics here.

🏆 Best Child Labour Topic Ideas & Essay Examples

🎓 good child labour project topics, 👍 interesting child labour essay topics, ❓ research questions on child labour.

Even today, in our progressive world, this is a pressing issue that you can discuss in detail, relying on region and global statistics. We would love to facilitate this task for you by providing good child labour essay topics. Our experts have collected this list on the causes, solutions, and other aspects of the issue. So, check our essay ideas and research questions on child labour and start writing!

• Arguments for and Against Banning All Forms of Child Labour It is essential to examine the border between safe and dangerous labor and compare arguments for and against the prohibition of all forms of child labor in manufacturing.
• Nestlé Company and Child Labour Exploitation In the following 15 years, the issue of child labour on African cocoa farms would become a cause celebre and Nestle would struggle to improve its image amid constant child labour scandals.
• Business Ethics and Child Labour According to the case, business ethics is the observance of rules and regulations that have been put in place. Child labour is one of the serious ethical issues that businesses have to deal with in […]
• Child Labour in India and Intervention Measures The Union government of India need to earnestly take the initiative of conducting civic education, particularly for the Indian scheduled castes and Tribes as these categories provide wellspring for the vulnerable and susceptible Gender.
• Problem of Child Labor in Modern Society According to the International Labor Organization, these are the worst forms of child labor. There are emerging cases of child labor in the third world nations.
• Child Labour: Ethical Aspects of Employment In spite of its rich history, the question of child labour cannot be answered in a proper way; a number of issues like personal desire, necessity, and living conditions have to be taken into consideration; […]
• Globalization and the Economics of Child Labor In his article “Globalization and the Economics of Child Labor”, Edmond Eric advances that globalization has resulted in a significant reduction in child labor throughout the world.
• Child Labour in the Late 1800s to the Early 1900s The children of the poor families were forced to find out the livelihood for their families and were deprived of education, his sweet adolescence and other necessities of the world.
• A Review of the Child Labour, Its Perspectives Child labour can be described any form of economic improving activity for children under the age of 12 depending on the individual state that compromises the child’s right to health, quality education and all work […]
• Child Labour and Rights in the United Kingdom From child labor to child abuse, there are certainly different government and non-government agencies all over the world that support and are keenly watching the child’s rights and protection programs of every country. The cases […]
• Businesses Engaging in Child Labour They claimed that child labor practices were against the precepts of their company and international labor laws. Fairtrade International admitted that they were informed of the allegations of child labor in the cotton farms.
• Child Labour: An Illegal Practise This paper seeks to elaborate the reasons behind the use of child labour in some corporations and the general ways child labour affects the conditions of the children involved.
• Child Labour Policies in Business While the US and many other European nations accept that the banning of any illegal form of child labour is vital for enhancing observance of the rights for children, some nations, especially in the developing […]
• Role of Codes of Conduct in Child Labour Practice As it will be observed in the following case, the issue of child labour is among the many challenges that have continued to affect the management of modern global supply chains.
• Labor Economics: Child Labor In another observation, Chau believes that the practice may be developed by the myth that children’s’ way of doing things better than adults would make them the appropriate substitute in the labor market.
• Intermittent Child Employment and Its Implications for Estimates of Child Labour
• Understanding Child Labour Beyond the Standard Economic Assumption of Monetary Poverty
• Climate Vulnerability, Communities’ Resilience and Child Labour
• Child Labour and the Industrial Revolution
• Child Labour Is Not Always Bad for Society
• An Analysis of the Child Labour in the Nineteenth Century England
• Child Labour and Its Effects on Children and Their Families
• An Introduction to the Child Labour in Third World Countries
• Banning Child Labour in Developing Countries
• International Migration and Child labour in Developing Countries
• Child Labour: A Historically Important Role with Future Repercussions
• International Migration and Child Labour in Developing Countries
• The Trade-Off Between Child Labour and Schooling in India
• The Role of Trade and Offshoring in the Determination of Child Labour
• Human Rights for Child Labour
• Mortality Risks, Education and Child Labour
• Child Labour in Developing Countries: The Role of Education, Poverty and Birth Order
• Educational Programme for Child Labour
• Breaking Mainstream Thinking: Legalizing Child Labour
• The Intriguing Relation Between Adult Minimum Wage and Child Labour
• Unintended Effects of Microfinance: An Increase in Child Labour in Some Contexts
• Child Labour, School Attendance and Performance
• Victorian England Child Labour
• Child Labour Is a Human Rights Violation
• Child Labour and Its Effect on Children Essay
• Agricultural Dualism, Incidence of Child Labour and Subsidy Policies
• Voting with Your Children: A Positive Analysis of Child Labour Laws
• Rescuing Children from the Hands of Child Labour
• An Overview of Child Labour in the 19th Century
• Child Labour and Trade Liberalization in a Developing Economy
• Impact of Trade Vs. Non-trade Policies on the Incidence of Child Labour
• Social Responsibility and Child Labour
• What Are Child Labour and Possible Prevention?
• Does Globalisation Increase Child Labour?
• Why Banning the Worst Forms of Child Labour Would Hurt Poor Countries?
• Was Victorian England Child Labour?
• The Income Elasticity of Child Labour: Do Cash Transfers Impact on the Poorest Children?
• Are Fair Trade Labels Effective Against Child Labour?
• How to Find the Trade-Off Between Child Labour and Human Capital Formation?
• Does Child Labour Still Exist Today?
• Was Child Labour Necessary During the Industrial Revolution?
• Child Labour and How Does It Happen?
• What Is the Connection Between Child Labour and Mothers’ Work?
• Is There Subterranean Child Labour Force?
• What Should You Know About Child Labour?
• Can the WTO Member States Rely on Citizen Concerns to Prevent Corporations from Importing Goods Made from Child Labour?
• Child Labour Measurement: Whom Should We Ask?
• What Is the Universally Acceptable Reason for Child Labour?
• Child Labour and What Is It?
• Should Child Labour Be Banned Globally?
• What Are the Trade-Off Between Human Capital and Child Labour?
• Does Child Labour Displace Schooling?
• Why Did Child Labour Decline in Britain in the 19th and 20th Centuries
• What Was the Child Labour?
• Does Health Insurance Reduce Child Labour and Education Gaps?
• What Is the Effect of Child Labour on Learning Achievement?
• Is Overpopulation the Main Cause of Child Labour?
• Does Child Labour Harm Child Education and Health?
• Does Child Labour Affect School Attendance and School Performance?
• What Is the Connection Between Child Labour and Trade Liberalization?
• What are the Un’s Preventative Measures Against Child Labour?
• Child Labour: Core Labour Standards and FDI: Friends or Foes?
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Analyzing Persuasive Techniques in Historical Media Messages: Child Labor

May 14, 2015

Posted by: Cheryl Lederle

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This post is by Rebecca Newland, the 2013-2015 Library of Congress Teacher in Residence.

Raise student awareness of the role of media messages in swaying public opinion by introducing persuasive strategies that have long been used to influence audiences:

• appeals based on emotion (pathos);
• appeals based on logic (logos); and
• appeals based on the credibility of the author or the author’s sources (ethos).

Help students develop skills in recognizing and critically analyzing media messages in primary sources. Read “ Hymn for the Working Children .” Select questions from the Analyzing Sheet Music and Song Sheets Teacher’s Guide paired with the Primary Source Analysis Tool to support students in analyzing the song.

Focus students on the songwriter’s views on the issue of child labor. Ask what details, words, or lines from the song convey those views. Next ask students to identify which of the persuasive strategies have been used in the song. Consider providing current advertising or news items that use the same mode or modes.

Help students build proficiency in identifying the strategies and their effect using a pair of items:

• The political cartoon depicts Uncle Sam and a map of the United States with a blot on the states in which child labor is legal.
• The news article from Chicago’s Daybook is titled “ Labor Leaders Call Child Labor Civilization Blot. “

Begin by analyzing the cartoon, supported by questions selected from the Analyzing Political Cartoons Teacher’s Guide . Again ask students to identify the details in the cartoon that convey the creator’s point about child labor. Ask: What persuasive strategies did the artist use?

Next, offer the news article. Ask students to read and analyze, looking for use of ethos, pathos, and logos.

Further the conversation about use of persuasion as seen in primary sources by asking:

• How do the cartoon and article work together to support a view of child labor?
• What persuasive strategies do you think are most effective in these items? What makes you say that?

Challenge students with one final item, perhaps as an assessment or culminating activity. Because Lewis Hine’s report on “ Child Labor in the Canning Industry of Maryland ,” uses all three strategies, it is ideal for assessing mastery.

How do you support students in thinking critically about media messages?

Comments (2)

I generally like your lessons and wanted to tell you that this is particular lesson is excellent. The title enticed me to consider if I can use it with my social studies methods students and the students in my diversity course. I certainly can and will use it not only for the content, but also for the strategies being used with the primary documents and their positions within a well planned and meaningful lesson.

Thank you for lesson. It is always great to find more ideas for paired text activities with an image and print text. This will be shared with many teachers!

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Home — Essay Samples — Life — Labor — Rhetorical Strategies in Combating Child Labor

Rhetorical Strategies in Combating Child Labor

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Published: Mar 8, 2024

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Introduction, rhetorical appeals, rhetorical devices.

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One of Trump’s Insidious Lies on Abortion Is Grounded in an Old Truth

As the debate over the Debate rages a day later, it’s tempting to try to catalog all of the lies Donald Trump told to an audience of tens of millions of Americans. But more interesting than the fact of his lies is how he lies.

Take a look at the former president’s rambling answer on abortion and reproductive rights. Linsey Davis of ABC News corrected Trump when he claimed, falsely, that Democratic-led states allow “execution after birth.” But he followed that one up with another lie, more insidious and, in its way, more Trumpian.

“Every legal scholar, every Democrat, every Republican, liberal, conservative, they all wanted this issue to be brought back to the states where the people could vote,” he said.

Let’s stop right there. The first part — “every legal scholar,” whether liberal or conservative — is not only untrue but obviously so. Just look at the briefs filed at the Supreme Court in the Dobbs case, which overturned Roe v. Wade. You will find an overwhelming number of liberal scholars weighing in on the side of preserving the constitutional right to an abortion.

But as with so many of Trump’s lies, it is wrapped around a grain of truth. In this case, the grain is that some high-profile liberals once criticized Roe v. Wade. Famously, Ruth Bader Ginsburg did so before she became a Supreme Court justice, arguing that Roe was decided too quickly and too broadly.

Of course, anyone who listened to her reasoning would learn that she did not want Roe overturned. Rather she wanted it to be grounded more explicitly in the Constitution , on equal protection grounds, rather than on the right to privacy. In the 1970s, the liberal law professor John Hart Ely strongly denounced Roe , but by 2022, when Justice Samuel Alito quoted Ely in his decision overturning Roe, attitudes like that were near impossible to find on the left.

This was all part of the political and legal evolution of the debate over abortion rights, but Trump doesn’t do nuance. So he ignored the inconvenient parts of the story and never explained the nature of the objections to Roe. And he changed “some” scholars to “all,” as though through sheer maximalism — the biggest building, the smartest guy, the perfect phone call — he could lull voters into his simplistic, zero-sum view of the world.

It’s also worth noting that, contrary to Trump’s claim, I have yet to meet anyone who actually wants abortion to be decided on a state-by-state basis. Why would they? No matter where you stand on the issue, it involves profound matters of life and death, bodily autonomy and human equality. What abortion opponent is fine with a rule that lets unborn babies be killed in California but not in Kentucky? What abortion rights supporter is content with protecting women from forced birth in New York but not in Texas?

This is why we have a federal Constitution that is supreme over the states — it’s how we protect and defend the fundamental rights of all Americans, regardless of where they happen to live. One of those rights — which Americans continue to support by at least a 2-to-1 majority , even after Roe was struck down — is a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body.

Opinion Writer

If Football Were Treated Like Inflation

Imagine you’re listening to a football game on the radio and the play-by-play guy says: “Patrick Mahomes takes the snap, throws … and that’s 71 yards gained over the last 12 plays!”

Ridiculous, right? But that’s exactly what journalists and economists do every month when the inflation numbers come out. Instead of saying what happened in the latest month — the latest “play” — we usually focus on what happened to prices over the past 12 months.

Can’t blame the government for this. The headline on the news release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that came out on Wednesday was this: “ C.P.I. for All Items Rises 0.2% in August; Shelter Up .” That’s the one-month change in the Consumer Price Index. It’s the equivalent of telling people what happened on the latest play from the line of scrimmage.

But reports about that announcement said things like this: “Inflation fell in August to 2.5 percent, down from 2.9 percent in July.” Summing up the price change over the past 12 months through August is the equivalent of summing up the total yardage over the past 12 plays.

The justification for focusing on the price change over the past year is that the monthly numbers are volatile. Looking over an entire year smooths out those ups and downs.

The problem is that the fresh news gets swamped by stuff that happened in the past. If the Kansas City Chiefs happened to gain 98 yards on a kickoff runback a few plays ago, that will “inflate” the total yardage gained over the past 12 plays. Economists call that a base effect. As time goes on, the 98-yard gain will fall out of the 12-play total and suddenly yardage gained — like measured inflation — will abruptly fall.

I’m not against measuring the year-over-year change in prices, but I’d like to see more attention on the latest monthly change, which is really the only new thing. What did happen on that Mahomes pass play?

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Paul Krugman

Opinion Columnist

Actually, Europe Is Doing a Lot for Ukraine

It wasn’t the biggest whopper of the night, but during the debate, Donald Trump — who refused to say that Ukraine should win its war — said some false things about the role our allies are playing. Again, let me give you the full statement, with no sanewashing :

“I want the war to stop. I want to save lives that are being uselessly — people being killed by the millions. It’s the millions. It’s so much worse than the numbers that you’re getting, which are fake numbers. Look, we’re in for $250 billion or more because they don’t ask Europe, which is a much bigger beneficiary to getting this thing done than we are. They’re in for $150 billion less because Biden and you don’t have the courage to ask Europe like I did with NATO. They paid billions and billions, hundreds of billions of dollars when I said either you pay up or we’re not going to protect you anymore. So that may be one of the reasons they don’t like me as much as they like weak people. But you take a look at what’s happening. We’re in for $250 to $275 billion. They’re into $100 to $150. They should be forced to equalize.”

I’m not sure why he thinks it necessary to claim that the casualty numbers are fake. But I do know that he loves to claim that our allies aren’t paying their share. Except that’s completely wrong. I wrote about this a few months ago : Europe is spending considerably more on Ukraine than we are:

It’s true that America, with its much bigger defense industry, is supplying most of the weapons. But we are not bearing most of the monetary burden.

For Trump, of course, the claim that Europe isn’t helping serves the purpose of portraying the Biden-Harris administration as weak. But it just isn’t true.

Kathleen Kingsbury

Opinion Editor

The Question Kamala Harris Couldn’t Answer

Even before Taylor Swift endorsed Kamala Harris, it was clearly the vice president’s night. In more than 90 minutes of contentious debate, Harris continued to prosecute the case against a second Donald Trump presidency more effectively than perhaps any of his other rivals has since 2015. But was it enough to satisfy those voters who say they still need to know more about her in order to cast a ballot in her favor this November?

Over the weekend, a survey by The New York Times and Siena College found that 60 percent of likely voters said they believed America was headed in the wrong direction, and many reported that they didn’t know enough about where Harris stands on several key issues. Any poll is just a snapshot in time, and it is admittedly hard to interpret exactly what those respondents are looking for from her. Do they want a better understanding of how she plans to govern from the Oval Office in terms of policy? Or are they more interested in her character and what type of leader she would be?

For those voters looking for answers on policy, the debate is unlikely to have left them feeling better informed. According to the Times tracker, the vice president spent nearly half of her speaking time attacking Trump. She rightfully called out his lies and his dangerous embrace of dictators. She was also strong in defending reproductive rights, as well as President Biden’s record on foreign and domestic policy. And she mentioned a handful of plans she’d pursue if she won the White House.

Yet we learned very few new details about those plans. On the economy, which voters often rank as the issue of most importance to them, she only scratched the surface in discussing how she’d enact tax cuts, build more affordable housing and help parents of young children. On foreign policy, she committed herself to a two-state solution in the Middle East and to supporting Ukraine in victory over Russia, but she didn’t expand on how she’d seek to achieve either goal. She pledged not to ban fracking but said little on how she would plan to invest in climate solutions. She also continued to dodge questions about why she recently distanced herself from positions that she took in her quest to be the Democratic nominee in 2020.

Most important, she did very little to distinguish her plans from Biden’s in an election in which the electorate seems hungry for change.

To be clear, Trump utterly failed to present or defend his policy goals. In many ways, the former president confirmed what has been obvious for years: His main aim, should he win another term, would be to do whatever is best for Donald Trump. He is not fit to serve .

But on a night when Harris set traps every which way for Trump (and he took the bait essentially every time), the one moment those tables were turned was when the former president asked her what she would do differently from the past three and a half years. Some voters may still be left looking for that answer.

Jessica Bennett

Contributing Opinion Editor

How to Diminish a Former President

She didn’t shout. She didn’t interrupt. She didn’t complain about having less time to speak .

But “she” — she being Kamala Harris, to use Donald Trump’s preferred name for her — managed to undermine him, provoking him into shouting, finger-pointing and sputtering, ranting about eating dogs and nuclear weapons with sweat on his upper lip. She remained calm and collected, emasculating him one subtle jab at a time.

I came into the debate prepared to watch for the subtleties of Trump’s sexism . He wouldn’t look at her. He refused to speak her name. He kept referring to “her boss”(President Biden), diminishing her power. But by the end of the debate, I was tallying the ways that Harris had done the reverse: picking at his brittle ego, cracking the fragile facade of his blustering machismo.

She dismissed the size of his rallies. She mocked his “love letters to Kim Jong-un.” She called him “weak,” referred to him as “this fella” and said Vladimir Putin would “eat you for lunch.” She talked about his multiple bankruptcies (code for him failing as a man and a provider) and noted that he had been “fired by 81 million people” and was clearly “having a hard time processing that,” like a gentle mother, patting her tantruming child on the head.

And she managed to do it without being shrill or angry or coming off as petty. Worst of all, she laughed at him. It wasn’t a forced or controlled or premeditated laugh. It was a real laugh. A big laugh. The sort of laugh she couldn’t hold in and made those of us watching laugh along with her.

“Talk about extreme,” she said, as he stared dead-eyed into the distance. She immediately hammered home all of the former generals and advisers who had declared him unfit for office. He could only fidget uncomfortably in response.

Eight years ago, the same man, perhaps less sleepy but no less angry, hulked over Hillary Clinton as she tried to ignore him and keep speaking. Now the woman running for this country’s highest office was no longer turning the other cheek. Instead, she laid bare the smallness of Trump’s manhood and asserted her own power, competence and confidence in the face of it. In the end, only a woman could do that for us.

David Firestone

Deputy Editor, the Editorial Board

Over 90 Minutes, Trump Descended to His True Self

For the first 10 minutes or so of Tuesday night’s debate, it looked as though the restrained version of Donald Trump might have shown up in Philadelphia, the one who learned his lesson from his failure to curb his impulses in the 2020 debates with Joe Biden. He stayed silent while Kamala Harris ripped up his economic plan, which she correctly noted was based on a tax cut for the wealthy and a sales tax on all imported goods. When it was his turn to respond, he accurately pointed out that the Biden administration had made no attempt to end the tariffs he imposed on China.

But it didn’t last, and no one who has watched Trump over the past decade thought it could. Within minutes, he descended from a discussion of tariffs into a description of immigrants — one he returned to over and over again during the evening — that could only be described as a form of nativist hysteria.

“They are taking over the towns,” he said. “They’re taking over buildings. They’re going in violently. These are the people that she and Biden let into our country. And they’re destroying our country. They are dangerous. They’re at the highest level of criminality, and we have to get them out. We have to get them out fast.”

This was the level of delusion that Harris and her campaign had clearly hoped Trump would demonstrate to voters, and it just got worse from there. “They’re eating the dogs,” he said, referring to Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio — a particularly heinous calumny that began on social media and was spread by his running mate, JD Vance. “The people that came in, they’re eating the cats. They’re eating — they’re eating the pets of the people that live there.” When the moderator David Muir pointed out that local officials had seen nothing of the kind, Trump said he heard about it on television.

Throughout the evening, in moments just like that, Harris was able to do something that Biden had failed to do when he was campaigning for re-election: push Trump in ways that exposed his spattering of lies and wild fantasies.

This was even true about the frightening attempt on Trump’s life. There has been no evidence that it was politically motivated, but that didn’t stop Trump from claiming it was. “I probably took a bullet to the head because of the things that they say about me,” he said, referring to his false claim that the indictments against him were evidence of “weaponizing” the justice system.

And asked about his role in undermining the democratic process, he said it was actually Harris who had done so, by usurping Biden’s role atop the ticket. “You talk about a threat to democracy — he got 14 million votes, and they threw him out of office. And you know what? I’ll give you a little secret. He hates her. He can’t stand her. But he got 14 million votes. They threw him out. She got zero votes.”

The debate was an unqualified success for Harris not just because she was able to define herself and her plans but also because she was able to push a few buttons and let Trump show off his truest self.

On Abortion, Trump Floundered in Fantasy Land

When running for office after taking away the reproductive freedoms of roughly half the American public, the best thing to do may simply be to lie about what you have done.

That was the political calculus made by Donald Trump during Tuesday night’s debate. His bald and outrageous lies about abortion and his role in overturning Roe v. Wade were fantastical, even for him. There’s lying, and then there’s the world of fairy tales, and he chose the latter.

Trump said Roe v. Wade had “torn our country apart” and that “every legal scholar, every Democrat, every Republican, liberal, conservative” wanted the issue to be sent back to the states.

This is a lie. A majority of Americans supported the protections for abortion under Roe and still do.

He accused Democrats of supporting killing babies. “In other words, we’ll execute the baby,” he said. This is another lie, and one of the ABC News moderators, Linsey Davis, called him on it. He accused Harris’s running mate, Gov. Tim Walz, of saying “execution after birth” is “absolutely fine.” This, too, is a lie.

Trump misled those who were watching the debate, saying he believes in “exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.” Yet it is thanks to Trump that states have been able to enact abortion bans that include no such exceptions.

Vice President Kamala Harris, rightly, pointed out that a majority of Americans believe in a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body and pointed out the pain that has been caused so many women in Republican-led states since the Supreme Court’s decision.

Abortion bans are a losing issue for Republicans, and Trump did nothing to change that.

Patrick Healy

Deputy Opinion Editor

I’m Hearing Huge Relief From Democrats Over Harris’s Debate Performance

Within the first half-hour of the debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, I heard from four veteran Democratic presidential campaign officials, and all of them had the same reaction to Harris: a strong and confident performance that often put Trump on the defensive, with the potential to win the face-off as he sputtered over abortion rights and students loans.

Harris went on offense from the start, as she strode across the stage to Trump’s podium and reached out, shook his hand and introduced herself. Her performance was — in pretty much every way — a total contrast to President Biden’s in the June debate, and if Trump had a playbook to win the debate, it wasn’t clear as he scrambled to fight back against her attacks over the economy, tariffs, in vitro fertilization and China.

Trump’s go-to line — “another lie” — probably pleased many in his MAGA base, but I’m skeptical it was persuasive for many undecided and swing voters. That’s because a lot of those voters have told The Times that they are tired of Trump’s complaining when they want to hear specifics about what he would do in office.

Time and again, Harris laid the bait, and Trump took it. “People start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom,” Harris said at one point. When the ABC moderators tried to ask Trump about immigration, he said, “First let me respond to the rallies.” But Harris also found ways to send Trump off on tangents, like when he pushed the lie that migrants in Ohio are killing pets for food. The moderators fact-checked him, but he wouldn’t let it go. And then Harris lowered the boom.

“Talk about extreme,” she said, laughing.

The Democratic strategists were struck by how much Harris owned Trump, who raised his voice more and more as the debate unfolded. They saw her as strong but likable and substantive on the issues. As for Republicans, one Trump ally argued that the former president spoke with confidence and strength and that many voters would still be unforgiving of Harris over the Biden-era economy.

The first 20 to 25 minutes of a debate are often the most important part: America is a country with a short attention span where first impressions count, where politicians try to set the tone and tempo of a debate from the start, and you can often tell quickly if someone will have an off night. Trump is often at his most disciplined (relatively speaking) at the start of a debate; as time goes on, he tends to meander in his answers and get snappish.

In this case, though, whatever discipline Trump had fell away pretty quickly in the face of a Harris onslaught. If she came under pressure, it was from the ABC moderators who pressed her on her changes in policy positions like on fracking. But I’m skeptical that the pressure from a moderator’s question will break through to voters like the pressure that Harris subjected Trump to on abortion and his proposed tax cuts for the wealthy.

Michelle Cottle

Trump Is Provoking a Congressional Fight He Can’t Win

Donald Trump took time out from his pre-debate “ policy time ” on Tuesday to stick his out-of-joint nose into Congress’s fight over funding the government:

“If Republicans in the House, and Senate, don’t get absolute assurances on Election Security, THEY SHOULD, IN NO WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM, GO FORWARD WITH A CONTINUING RESOLUTION ON THE BUDGET,” he raved on Truth Social . “THE DEMOCRATS ARE TRYING TO ‘STUFF’ VOTER REGISTRATIONS WITH ILLEGAL ALIENS. DON’T LET IT HAPPEN — CLOSE IT DOWN!!!”

Such feistiness! Love to see it. Especially since the former president must know, or at least suspect, that he is spitting into the wind — shrieking at his minions to go hard on a poison-pill measure that has less chance of becoming law this season than JD Vance has of winding up the new V.P. of the Cat Fanciers’ Association . (The poison pill is a measure to require proof of citizenship to vote, even though the law already forbids noncitizens from voting, and Republicans have never shown any evidence that this is a problem.)

Then again, it’s not totally unreasonable for Trump to expect Republican lawmakers to blindly do his bidding. I mean, earlier this year, they tanked a serious bipartisan bill on what is ostensibly one of the party’s top priorities — border security — because Trump told them that doing so was in his electoral interests. Why not then force a government shutdown in pursuit of a measure that would cast further doubt on the integrity of our election system?

I’ll tell you why not. Because a government shutdown in the final stretch of a tick-tight, high-stakes election cycle would be political madness — especially if it looked as though the shutdown occurred not because of substantive disagreements over spending but because Trump was bullying his congressional team into indulging his delusions about election fraud. Again.

MAGA die-hards might be jazzed. The rest of the electorate, not so much.

Republican lawmakers may be loath to upset their nominee, but they value nothing above their own political fortunes. Most of them aren’t stupid enough to sign up for this kind of self-immolation.

Alicia P.Q. Wittmeyer and Rachel Louise Snyder

3 Questions: When Women Kill Their Abusers

Alicia Wittmeyer, Opinion Special Projects Editor: You’ve written about domestic violence for years. For your latest essay , how did you end up focusing on the legal consequences for women who kill their abusers?

Rachel Louise Snyder, Contributing Opinion Writer: When I was writing my book “ No Visible Bruises ” I heard over and over how we didn’t know the number of women who were in prison for killing someone who was abusing them. I found this startling; this seemed like such a basic statistic. After I spoke about this at Stanford Law School in 2020, the executive directors of the Criminal Justice Center — Debbie Mukamal and David Sklansky — pushed for a large-scale survey of women in prison for homicide, which became the basis for the piece.

Wittmeyer: What was it like being in a prison as a proctor instead of a journalist?

Snyder: It was so humbling. Debbie made me go through training about not harming people while you’re talking with them and, honestly, I think it’s forever changed the way I interact with people. For example, when I do these incredibly intense interviews now, I never get off the phone with someone without asking what their plan is to take care of themselves. Will they call a friend? Go to church?

Doing this in person mattered. Formerly incarcerated women who were our consultants said that inmates get surveyed ad nauseam, especially through the mail: all these faceless, nameless people asking for the worst moment of their lives. Stanford ensured that clergy and/or a social worker was available on survey days so that the women would have some emotional support.

Wittmeyer: I know the researchers hope to eventually expand their survey to every state in the country. Ambitious, important — daunting! Any sense of the states that might be next on their list?

Snyder: To some extent, it depends on where we get permission — getting permission to do in-person research is a whole complicated process that, in our case, took nearly two years (in part, because of Covid).

California, Florida and Texas contain a huge percentage of the women who are incarcerated for homicide nationwide. But Texas is complicated because its facilities are smaller, and a survey would require visiting more of them, so just logistically it’s difficult. There are states with certain laws that make them potentially interesting to us, like Oklahoma and Illinois, for example. But it costs money to do this kind of research, and no one wants to fund it, honestly.

As a society, we don’t like messy victims. The anti-domestic violence advocacy world prioritized resources for victims who don’t get convicted of committing crimes. Incarcerated women simply don’t have a ton of people on the outside really advocating for them among potential donors. So, in part, the next state will depend on who is willing to fund this research.