Convention on the Rights of the Child and Adultism: How to Deconstruct a Myth?

Abstract

The image of the child in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is represented by the 3-Ps formula (protection, provision and participation). The first two Ps are not debatable from an adult point of view since they are in tune with the prevailing image of the child as the immature, incomplete and passive object of adults’ care and protection (as future adults). Yet, the participation part of the formula is much more controversial. Instead of the child as the object of rights, participation introduces the image of a child as the subject of rights, a (pro)active and competent partner in the process of (co)construing his/her own social reality. While the protection and provision narratives focus on needs, participation introduces the concept of competencies/evolving capacities that enable children to be actively involved in all decisions that might affect them, thus opposing the dominant “regimes of truth” with respect to the child’s image. This article discusses the regimes of truth, i.e. assumptions that are taken for granted and totally un-questionable, which constitute a powerful basis for justifying and maintaining the adultism – the oppressive practices towards children as well as the potential of the CRC in the process of deconstructing those oppressive practices. Participation, the best interest of the child, and the concept of evolving capacities will be discussed as a way to deconstruct the adultism and the assumptions on which it rests.