VD03100661
THAT'S WHY I'M WORKING
Directed by Maarten Schmidt & Thomas Doebele

Child labor is an emotional issue in the West. But families in the slums of Dacca, Bangladesh are so poor that any income, even the pittance paid to child workers, is necessary for survival.

Most children in the slums work in the "hidden child labor" circuit. They serve as domestics, collect recyclables, or work in cottage industries, often earning no more than room and board. Employers prefer children aged 8 to 12; they are old enough to work seriously and too young to protest miserable conditions.

Today's child laborers are tomorrow's uneducated adults. In 1996, the Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) started a 3-year primary course for Dacca's disadvantaged. The small schools are free, and provide a first step away from the vicious cycle of poverty.

THAT'S WHY I'M WORKING focuses on Ebrahimpur 3, a school at the edge of a slum in Dacca. Children here are introduced during the three-hour school day. The film also follows the children to their world outside school, to their homes and to work, where they behave almost like adults, fully aware of the importance of their contribution to the family income. Speaking in their own words, the children relate their worldviews, sharing their worries but also their dreams for the future.

Reviews
~ "A deeply moving story¡­ not so much because it is a familiar Dickensian tale of children trapped in poverty, but because the children themselves tell their stories in a fashion that leaves little margin for manipulation. Vividly revealed in this simplicity is the complexity of child labor in a country like Bangladesh. To a common Western eye ¡­ there is little room for an interpretation of child labor as anything other than evil. Anybody who is inclined to see shild labor in this light ought to see this documentary before passing his/her preconceived judgement." - Education About Asia

~ "THAT'S WHY I'M WORKING illuminates multi-faceted and often contradictory views by correctly depicting the broad dimensions of the child labor issue in context. This film links these crucial issues with sociocultural, economic, and sociopolitical aspects from a multidisciplinary perspective." - Asian Educational Media Service, News and Reviews
DVD (Color)
53 minutes
1999
 
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