Question

lewis hine and child labor laws
by sheila boyle
1 the year is 1911. boys, aged nine and ten, are working as coal breakers outside one of pennsylvanias coal mines. they sit in rows on boards placed over coal chutes and, as the coal comes pouring out, pick out pieces of slate, stone, or other impurities embedded in the coal. faces covered in soot, the boys must concentrate and watch very carefully because coal and slate look very much alike. they must be cautious as well because if they reach too far, fall, and slip into the flowing coal, they will be carried off by the coal chute and eventually smothered to death. a foreman, armed with a broom handle, raps the heads of boys who are not working hard enough. the boys bend over the chutes until their backs ache. often they have chronic coughs from breathing in air thick with coal dust.
2 young girls were not exempt from hard labor. during the early 1900s, when many crops were still planted and harvested by hand, children - both boys and girls - worked on farms in large numbers. ironically, many of the people who opposed children working in factories saw nothing wrong with them working on farms. after all, they were working with their families and breathing in fresh air. some children, called \scrubbers,\ worked in textile mills, crawling under machines to clean them. others worked in canneries, packing fruits and vegetables. the work was often dangerous, and the hours were long.
3 in the early 1900s, a man named lewis hine became interested in the problem of child labor. hine was a sociologist and a photographer. he decided to use his camera to expose the harsh realities of child labor. hine traveled across the united states, taking pictures of children working in factories, mines, and fields. his photographs showed children as young as five or six years old working long hours in dangerous conditions. hines pictures were powerful and emotional. they shocked the public and helped to raise awareness about the need for child labor laws.
4 in 1916, congress passed the keating - owen child labor act. this law banned the sale of goods produced by child labor in interstate commerce. however, the supreme court declared the law unconstitutional in 1918. undaunted, supporters of child labor reform continued to fight. in 1938, congress passed the fair labor standards act. this law set 16 as the minimum age for most employment and 18 for hazardous jobs. it also established a maximum workweek for children and required employers to pay children the minimum wage.
5 today, child labor is illegal in the united states. however, it is still a problem in many parts of the world. millions of children are still working in factories, mines, and fields, often in dangerous and unhealthy conditions. the fight for child labor rights is an ongoing one.
2 which sentence from paragraph 9 expresses the authors point of view?
a it set 18 as the minimum age for working hazardous jobs
b in 1941 the supreme court declared that legislation - the fair labor standards act - constitutional and thus made it the law of the land
c with the exception of agricultural work, the law prohibited child labor by children under the age of 16
d in the fight to protect the rights of children, this law was a great and long - overdue victory.

Explanation:

Para determinar la opinión del autor, se debe buscar una frase que muestre un juicio o valoración. La opción D muestra que el autor considera la ley como una gran victoria en la lucha por proteger los derechos de los niños, lo que es una expresión de opinión.

Answer:

D. "In the fight to protect the rights of children, this law was a great and long - overdue victory."