Shahidul Alam

About the author: Shahidul Alam is a photographer, writer, and activist who runs the Drik Picture Library in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Efforts to discourage the use of child labor include a congressional bill, first introduced in 1992 by Democratic Senator Tom Harkin, which would ban the importation of products made by children. Such legislation is counterproductive. Children factory workers in third world countries contribute needed income to their households, and these children face increased poverty or more exploitative work conditions if new regulations force them to leave their factory jobs. Such was the case in Bangladesh in 1994, when thousands of children lost their factory jobs after news of the Harkin bill aired. Activists who truly want to improve the lives of working children must carefully analyze the complex social realities...