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THE ORPHAN TRAINS - Coggle Diagram
THE ORPHAN TRAINS
Orphans viewed as a source of easy labor
Used as a replacement for slaves
Highlights how the normalization of dehumanization among Southern planters affected their treatment even of white children
Abused with excessive labor
One child became mentally ill from excessive overwork, and died young
Many fled and drifted through the country
Led to an independent investigation of the program
Reasoning for the program
Need for labor in rural communities
In an era with normalized child labor, employment was seen as vital for children
Distaste for child imprisonment and orphan asylums
Reflects a focus on achieving permanency
Rampant homelessness in NYC
Issues of crime and poor conditions for orphaned youth
Xenophobia against immigrant children
Local communities distrusted orphans from New York
Viewed as an issue of "bad blood" and not upbringing
Looked down upon by those with tight-knit families
Parents often discouraged their children from coming near them
Backgrounds ridiculed by other schoolchildren
Many had trouble finding anyone to play with and were treated as outsiders
Strengths of the program
Addressed urban homelessness and rural depopulation at the same time
Many families who could no longer have children were delighted to care for a child
Permanency was achieved rather than long-term residency in institutional care
Positive implications for both budgeting and the well-being of the children
High success rate in improving children's welfare
Internal review observed that most had found loving homes
Separation from old lives
Siblings were adopted separately, losing contact
Some kept in contact by mail, while others never saw each other again
Initial separation occurred without the child's input,
although they could refuse a prospective adopter
Despite this, some adopters attempted to forcibly seize the children
Some had living family, but were taken anyways
One was discouraged from re-contacting family