This talk explores the contradiction between the political rhetoric and the lived reality of children’s lives under capitalism and asks the questions: how did it get this way? What would it take to change it? Through an examination of how different human societies have cared for and thought about their children it becomes clear that when it comes to social reproduction, nothing is eternal. How we raise our kids is conditioned by, but also helps to shape, the society in which we live and struggle. Issues of children’s rights, children’s labor, and children in struggle will be considered.