Hidden in Plain Sight: The Tragedy of Children's Rights from (Public Square the Public Square)

"This moving and highly readable book reflects Woodhouse's long career as a distinguished family-law scholar and her deep reflection on the position of children in law and policy. She brings us riveting stories about famous people who, as children, have made significant contributions in areas such as gender equality and civil rights. Woodhouse presents us with the original and compelling argument that children should also have rights, not because they are potential adults, but because of the agency, courage, and vision they can and do exercise as children."--Martha Albertson Fineman, Robert W. Woodruff Professor of Law, Emory University

"Woodhouse's superb, nuanced volume demonstrates the importance of treating children with dignity, shows the connection between children's needs and rights, and conveys how a developmentally based human rights framework can shape the balance between dependency and autonomy on the journey from childhood to adulthood."--Robert G. Schwartz, executive director of the Juvenile Law Center

"This is a wonderful book that essentially teaches us, through the eyes of a child, what it means to be an American--or at least what it should mean. Through profound and beautifully told stories of the experiences of youth, Professor Woodhouse provides new insight and 'a new conversation' about the misunderstood and improperly politicized concept of children's rights."--Marvin Ventrell, president and CEO of the National Association of Counsel for Children

"An intensely personal book, written with passion and conviction. Woodhouse does a highly effective job of conveying the importance of attending to children's voices and agency. This book is likely to attract public attention and spur public debate."--Steven Mintz, author of Huck's Raft: A History of American Childhood

"Woodhouse is a wise person of experience whose voice is an important one, because of her good sense, her compassion, and her well-earned reputation in the field. She is also an excellent writer who brings the law alive through her stories, and talks about important legal issues in language that all can understand."--Elizabeth Bartholet, author of Nobody's Children and Family Bonds

"Woodhouse's superb, nuanced volume demonstrates the importance of treating children with dignity, shows the connection between children's needs and rights, and conveys how a developmentally based human rights framework can shape the balance between dependency and autonomy on the journey from childhood to adulthood."--Robert G. Schwartz, executive director of the Juvenile Law Center

"This is a wonderful book that essentially teaches us, through the eyes of a child, what it means to be an American--or at least what it should mean. Through profound and beautifully told stories of the experiences of youth, Professor Woodhouse provides new insight and 'a new conversation' about the misunderstood and improperly politicized concept of children's rights."--Marvin Ventrell, president and CEO of the National Association of Counsel for Children

"An intensely personal book, written with passion and conviction. Woodhouse does a highly effective job of conveying the importance of attending to children's voices and agency. This book is likely to attract public attention and spur public debate."--Steven Mintz, author of Huck's Raft: A History of American Childhood

"Woodhouse is a wise person of experience whose voice is an important one, because of her good sense, her compassion, and her well-earned reputation in the field. She is also an excellent writer who brings the law alive through her stories, and talks about important legal issues in language that all can understand."--Elizabeth Bartholet, author of Nobody's Children and Family Bonds

Barbara Bennett Woodhouse explores the meaning of children's rights throughout American history, interweaving the childhood stories of iconic figures such as Benjamin Franklin with those of children less known but no less courageous, like the heroic youngsters who marched for civil rights. How did America become a place where twelve-year-old Lionel Tate could be sentenced to life in prison without parole for the 1999 death of a young playmate? In answering questions like this, Woodhouse challenges those who misguidedly believe that America's children already have more rights than they need, or that children's rights pose a threat to parental autonomy or family values. She reveals why fundamental human rights and principles of dignity, equality, privacy, protection, and voice are essential to a child's journey into adulthood, and why understanding rights for children leads to a better understanding of human rights for all.

Compassionate, wise, and deeply moving, Hidden in Plain Sight will force an examination of our national resistance--and moral responsibility--to recognize children's rights.

Illustrations ix

Foreword by Ruth O'Brien xi

Preface xv

Introduction: Ain't I a Person? 1

Chapter 1: How to Think about Childhood 15

Chapter 2: How to Think about Children's Rights 29

Part 1: The Privacy Principle: Stories of Bondage and Belonging

Chapter 3: Boys in Slavery and Servitude: Frederick Douglass 51

Chapter 4: Girls at the Intersection of Age, Race, and Gender: Dred Scott's Daughters 75

Chapter 5: Growing Up in State Custody: "Tony" and "John G." 93

Part 2: The Agency Principle: Stories of Voice and Participation

Chapter 6: The Printer's Apprentice: Ben Franklin and Youth Speech 111

Chapter 7: Youth in the Civil Rights Movement: John Lewis and Sheyann Webb 133

Part 3: The Equality Principle: Stories of Equal Opportunity

Chapter 8: Old Maids and Little Women: Louisa Alcott and William Cather 159

Chapter 9: Breaking the Prison of Disability: Helen Keller and the Children of "Greenhaven" 180

Part 4: The Dignity Principle: Stories of Resistance and Resilience

Chapter 10: Hide and Survive: Anne Frank and "Liu" 213

Chapter 11: Children at Work: Newsboys, Entrepreneurs, and "Evelyn" 234

Part 5: The Protection Principle: Stories of Guilt and Innocence

Chapter 12: Telling the Scariest Secrets: Maya Angelou and "Jeannie" 259

Chapter 13: Age and the Idea of Innocence: "Amal" and Lionel Tate 279

CONCLUSION: The Future of Rights 304

Notes 315

Bibliography 337

Index 349