How do slum children earn money?

[Erin-Rose-x]

Apart from begging what do they sell etc?

[dothawkes31]

Which slums? In the UK or abroard?

[Sandy-Wroe]

Abroad, they pick through rubbish dumps for tins or anything else of some value.
Some become criminals. Others sell their bodies.
They do what they need to do to survive.

[Mr Veritas]

Sad to say,that the street children in Colombia (where we have friends,and have stayed) will do ANYTHING,including prostitution (from age 7 upwards!) to make some money just to eat and live.
These children sleep in shop doorways at night.
The Colombian police use them for target practice (from the patrol car) at night as a bit of fun.They even keep a record of how many they kill, and get a bonus when they get back to their station!
They seem to regard these children much as we would regard shooting grey squirrels,foxes,or other vermin.
People in Europe have no idea of the horrors in some South American countries!

[Mr Veritas]

Good idea poodicat.
Sadly,judging by some of the films that children watch they would probably only regard it as another Hollywood fiction?

[trt]

There were a couple of Docs on TV a few weeks ago of slum kids in India, it was sad but they were so happy and clean. Not that I agree but no mention of selling their bodys, but it must go on.

[wolf63]

I am not really a 'kiddie' person - my maternal instinct never arrived in the post. But I still feel that adults should, instinctively, be protective of children.

These children are treated like vermin - and this won't change until the adults, in this case the police, change their attitude and develop compassion.

My two cats have a much better standard of living than these children - Frankie has asthma and is feeling wheezy and miserable today but come tomorrow he will be at the vet for medical treatment - if I can get him in the bag.

These kids have nothing.

[trt]

Thats kind of you wolf63 , putting a cat in a bag!!!!!

[wolf63]

This would be the cat that I wanted to throttle a few days back. Anyway - it is a nice little bag with airholes and mesh so that he can see out.

[sophie_1003]

wolf, when you get to the vet's will you be letting the cat out of the bag? (sorry couldn't resist that one!)

[omnom]

Slum children have a very tough life.
There's always a main man, who controls all of them. He tells the children to go out begging and sell things like tissues.
One thing they do to the children is cut off the legs and blind them so they get sympathy from people to get money.
I have been in a situation where my mum bought tissues off this homeless woman, and then she took out her MOBILE, yes a mobile phone, to call her 'mates' and a load of other beggars came and asked for money.
If you got to a country where there are beggars, the best thing to do is ignore them, they have money really, but they live on the streets and use and abuse children to get more. Children are like their slaves, I have sympathy for them, but I don't give money to them.

omnom

[omnom]

Not all children are like that though, but a majority are.

omnom