Project 2025 would exploit children and century-old labor laws by allowing minors to work in dangerous jobs

, we must protect our children. Problems viewing this email? [View it in your browser]( [Center for American Progress]( InProgress from the Center for American Progress To make sure you never miss an email from us, please add progress@americanprogress.org to your contacts or safe senders list. Thanks for staying connected with us! The far-right plan to eliminate child labor protections to the benefit of greedy corporations [A doffer boy is seen in Globe Cotton Mills, Augusta, Georgia, circa 1909. (Getty/HUM Images/Universal Images Group)]( Photo credit: Getty/HUM Images/Universal Images Group It should go without saying that children don’t belong in factories and shouldn’t be handling toxic substances. A [new column]( from the Center for American Progress reveals how the far-right policy blueprint known as Project 2025 would take us back nearly 100 years to the dark time of dangerous child labor. Despite strong [evidence]( that dangerous child labor can harm young workers, Project 2025 proposes eliminating protections against hazardous work for children. Specifically, it aims to let underage teens work in [dangerous jobs]( such as those that would require them to handle explosives or in places where they may be exposed to toxic substances. Exploiting child labor sounds extreme because it is extreme, yet politicians—[mostly]( in [far-right states]( worked vehemently in recent years to institute these changes. According to the Economic Policy Institute, in the past three years alone, “[28 states]( have introduced bills to weaken child labor laws, and 12 states have enacted them.” Many of these proposals are a direct result of lobbying by corporations and [special interest groups]( which see putting children to work as an opportunity for inexpensive labor to boost profits. Project 2025 would scale these efforts nationally. [READ MORE]( The Supreme Court needs an ethics code now The U.S. Supreme Court has been facing a reckoning of its own making. While billionaires have been pampering justices with free [luxury]( [vacations]( and an extremist flag has been flown outside Justice Samuel Alito’s home in [full view]( the Supreme Court has been making disastrous decisions for the American people. We need a Supreme Court that is accountable to the will of the people, not corrupt billionaires, politicians, or corporate interests. Sign our letter to demand an enforceable ethics code for Supreme Court justices today: [ADD YOUR NAME]( Reforming a radical Supreme Court majority We've been [hearing a lot]( about the need for Supreme Court reform, but what does that actually look like? [Devon Ombres]( senior director for Courts and Legal Policy at CAP, explains how to reform the nation's highest court. [Screengrab of Tweet featuring Devon Ombres' video.]( [Share This]( Students and teachers are feeling the heat [Children cool off by playing in a fountain in Brooklyn’s Domino Park, New York, during a heat wave on July 24, 2022. (Getty/Alexi Rosenfeld)]( Photo credit: Getty/Alexi Rosenfeld “Kids are coming to school and not even having their basic needs of comfort met; and if they don’t have their needs met, they can’t progress and learn and do all of those things we want them to do at school,” said Columbus, Ohio, elementary school teacher Madison McCulloch. “We have to meet these needs before we can expect them to learn.” As global climate change progresses, extreme heat is becoming an increasing concern for the children, teachers, and staff across the country who are left unprotected by aging schools and child care facilities. An estimated 36,000 schools nationwide lack access to adequate HVAC systems, and child care providers commonly cite facility improvements as a high need. While excessive heat is dangerous for everyone, children are particularly vulnerable to adverse impacts on their health and learning. In a [new report]( and [executive summary]( CAP highlights five policy opportunities to protect the well-being of children and educators, both now and in the future. [EXPLORE THE 5 ACTIONS]( Recess is canceled This year’s temperatures are already on track to exceed those of 2023—the hottest year on record in human history. The increasing frequency and intensity of extreme heat poses real risks to children’s learning outcomes and their physical and mental health. Elizabeth Bechard from Moms Clean Air Force explains: [Screengrab of Elizabeth Bechard from Moms Clean Air Force speaking on extreme heat.]( [SHARE THIS]( Follow us on [Follow us on Twitter]( [Follow us on Facebook]( [Follow us on YouTube]( [Follow us on Instagram]( [Support CAP]( [Manage Email Preferences or Unsubscribe]( [Privacy Policy]( [Center for American Progress]( Center for American Progress 1333 H Street NW Washington, D.C. 20005 [supporter]