According to the Constitution, the Framers wanted to ‘secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity’. Article 27 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child says ‘States Parties recognize the right of every child to a standard living adequate for the child’s physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development’. Article 32 of the Convention on the Rights of the child says ‘States Parties recognize the right of the child to be protected from economic exploitation and from performing any work that is likely to be hazardous or interfere with the child’s education, or to be harmful to the child’s health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development.’ All 196 countries in the world have ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child, except for one: The United States of America. Is there a reason for this? Does the U.S. agree that children should be exploited and used because of their innocence and inability to defend themselves?
