Public struggle against domestic child labor: democratic implications of advocacy

Abstract

The article analyzes the limits of advocacy groups' public actions in fighting domestic child labor (DCL). It examines the context of the Brazilian state of Pará, where a program was developed to fight the problem. Through critical discourse analysis, it investigates the coverage of the issue by the two main local newspapers from 2000 to 2009 in order to analyze: the nature of inequalities related to DCL; the places of speech and the stances of girls and women involved in DCL; the relationship between advocacy agents and people affected. The findings suggest that, despite the contribution of advocacy to public debate on the problem, the discussion has not advanced to a reflection on the actual conditions for those girls and women's autonomy.

Keywords:
advocacy; inequalities; domestic child labor; gender