Protection of children’s rights in the USA at the end of the 19th – on the beginning of the 20th century: historical excursion
Authors: Matseliukh I. 
Published: March 2024

The article analyzes the problems of protecting the rights of children in the USA, which developed at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries. It was established that by the end of the 19th century. the question of protecting children has never been raised anywhere in the world. The considered case of Mary Ellen McCormack, who suffered brutal abuse from her adoptive parents, and with the help of Elbridge Jerry's lawyer, was transferred to the US Supreme Court. It was established that this precedent became the first documented case of child abuse in the history of the United States of America, and in the world as a whole.

Tracing the history of the formation of the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children "NYSPCC", which became the first organization in the world to protect the interests of children. His activities, which consisted in the legal protection of children, their material support and violation of their rights and interests, were considered. Particularly shocking were the persistent abuses in private kindergartens and homes where children were kept in unlivable conditions, while the guardians received the costs of child support from the state.

It was emphasized that the establishment of the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children "NYSPCC" was the key to changes in this area. His activities prompted the rapid formation of other societies in the United States and the adoption of the first normative legal acts that guaranteed the rights of children and provided a mechanism for their protection. Gradually, there was a transformation of public consciousness, which took over responsibility for the protection of minor children.

Examines the creation of state departments of welfare, social services, health, and labor, which opened in all states, as well as the Federal Children's Bureau, which was established in 1912. It became the first national government office in the world, whose powers focused on ensuring better well­being of children and their mothers.

The field of activity of the Bureau was studied, which developed a whole set of measures, which consisted in the introduction of prenatal care for women, helped them in the birth of a child, the establishment of specialized children's clinics, the introduction of the institute of patronage nurses, certified milk stations for the children's year, and raising awareness among women mothers about the measures . and the need for proper child care to address high infant mortality.

Another area of activity of the Children's Bureau was the control over the use of child labor, as well as educational activities - the publication of books that highlighted contemporary problems in the field of violation of children's rights. The work of the bureau also affected legislative initiatives. Thus, the Keating-Owen Act of 1916, which prohibited the labor of minors, as well as the Sheppard- Towner Act of 1921, which allocated federal subsidies to state programs for the protection of motherhood and childhood, were analyzed. The following were subject to state funding: training of midwives, educational work with parents, opening of health centers, parenting courses, introduction of standards and the procedure for licensing maternity homes, collection of data on maternal and child mortality.

The prescriptions of the Law on Social Security of 1935, which provided for the financing of a program to help dependent children, low-income families, and the creation of a child care service, which was authorized to supervise the maintenance of children's rights, were studied.