The Making of a Good White - E-thesis - Helsinki.fi

deteriorating infl uence on other children especially those in their own
neighbourhood . . . Mrs. N. refused to allow the children to be removed
from the home. The social worker considers that unless these children
are removed from the home the family must be moved away for the
sake of the surrounding tenants. Because the family has responded
from one aspect of the social work, social worker feels that it is unfair
to deprive them of a cheap home and allow their environment to degenerate.”
(CHL, SWR: 1940.)
The Company is the Mother, the Company is the Father
From early on the taking of the children from their parents and placing
them in foster homes and institutions became the trademark of social
work in the eyes of the residents – a situation which lasted up to the
1980s, and was still reflected in my informants’ accounts.
“When I came to this area people seemed to think I had two things
to do: hand out food parcels and take their children away.” (Social
worker.)
As the poor white adults were often seen as being beyond redemption,
the emphasis was on the upliftment of the children. The education system
promoted rehabilitation. Schools in the area carried out this task,
but sometimes it was not enough. Parents of problematic offspring were
given a chance to send their children to boarding schools at government
expense. These boarding schools were in the countryside where children,
’corrupted’ by their urban environment, were supposed to learn a
healthier way of life. During the holidays children could be sent away to
the Company’s holiday camps.
A family whose children were not educated to be hard working, sexually
controlled and neat citizens ran a real risk of losing them altogether.
“As the B. children’s upbringing has been totally devoid of even the
most elementary training in personal habits and cleanliness, it was
suggested to Mr. B. to place them in the care of a suitable foster mother
or in an institution.” (CHL, SWR: 1942.)
Moreover, if the child did not turn out a proper white, the record of the
parents would be negatively affected. If the children were troublesome,
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