The Lost Golden Age of Children's Rights in America - Min Ko Ko

Year
2025
Organisation
Harvard University
Tags
children’s rights
Children’s Bureau
Nixon
civil rights
archival research
UNICEF
Cold War
federal policy
child welfare
activism
Black mothers
Katherine Oettinger
Martha May Eliot
human rights
US history
Harvard
Summary

My thesis uncovers the forgotten history of the US Children’s Bureau, once a global leader in children’s rights. Through archival research, it traces postwar innovation, a 1960s expansion inspired by civil rights, and the bureau’s dismantling under Nixon. The work highlights today’s parallels and the need to restore moral leadership for children.