Week 41 - 2019
Lewis W. Hine, Two of the helpers in the Tifton Cotton Mill, Tifton, Ga. They work regularly. 1909. Preus Museum Collection
A girls life
Two bright eyed children look upon us, carefully smiling towards the photographer. The girls were most likely unfamiliar with being photographed. Hine’s choice of title reveals to us that the girls are <<helpers>> in a cotton mill in Georgia, and that they work regularly. In clarity: they are child labourers. An american historian was captivated with the image, and their wish for more information gave rise to a thorough investigation.
The girl to the right is Eddie Lou Young. She is eight years old, with 10 siblings. Eddies mother Catherine became a widower after her husband died of tuberculosis, half a year after their youngest sibling was born. The family's collective income, from their mother and the working children, was just enough to survive on. However, three months after this photo was taken Catherine see no other option for survival other than give her eight youngest children to the orphanage, including Eddie.
The 11th of October has been marked as the International Day of the Girl. The day aims to highlight and address the challenges faced by girls, that prevent the fulfillment of their basic human rights, such as a right for protection, education and a life out of poverty.
Since this photo was taken, many important developments regarding living conditions for girls have been made. Still, there is a long road ahead for genuine equality: according to the UN girls are the poorest, and fewer girls than boys get to finish their general education. Girls suffer more gender-based violence and way fewer girls than boys die before they turn five years old.
Eddie found a way out of poverty and lived a good life until she was 78. Perhaps the International Day of the Girl will help other girls do the same.