The Role of Adults in Supporting Children’s Rights from Below

Abstract

We began this book describing the important role that outstanding individuals, social institutions and organizations, or the states themselves have played in the promotion and defence of children’s rights during the twentieth century. In every chapter, and supported in examples from social research and social theory, we have tried to demonstrate the aptitude that the children must ‘discover’, ‘recreate’ and defend their rights for themselves. Further we have demonstrated the scarce recognition that the adult society shows towards such capacities and the ever clearer need for a ‘transfer of power’ from adults towards children, with a view to allowing the children to be stronger and more in charge, for themselves, for those who form their more immediate relations circle and for society itself.