Kids On Strike!

Kids on Strike! tells the story of children who stood up for their rights against powerful company owners, from a "turn-out" in Lowell, Massachusetts, in 1836 led by eleven-year-old Harriet Hanson to the dramatic strike of 1912 in Lawrence, Massachusetts. By the early 1900s nearly two million children were in the United States work force. Their tiny fingers, strong eyesight, and boundless energy made them perfect employees. But after years and years of working long hours every day under harsh and inhumane conditions, children began to organize and make demands in order to protect themselves. They fought for better wages, fairer housing costs, and safer working environments. Susan Campbell Bartoletti tells of labor strikes led by young people throughout the United States.