From Philanthropists to Juvenile Judges: Women dealing with Juvenile Delinquency. International Debates and Practices (1890-1960)

Child protection is one of the first domains in which women got involved socially, politically, and professionally. From the end of the nineteenth century onwards, there was growing debate on the international level about the role they could play in the juvenile justice system and the specialized courts dealing with delinquent children that emerged all around Europe. From probation officers to juvenile judges, from women doctors to female police officers, women got engaged in child protection in multiple ways. Yet each of these functions or duties was the subject of fierce discussion and negotiation concerning the specificity – and even legitimacy – of women’s formal participation in this field of social (re)action. How did women come to the forefront as privileged auxiliaries of the justice or police system in juvenile delinquency matters? How did their involvement and commitment, qualified as “natural” in some discourses, actually translate into practice? Did their integration really take place smoothly? And, finally, how was their work received, evaluated or criticised? This paper will analyse the debates and ideas brought forward by major international agencies (League of Nations, International council of Women) on the one hand, and the ways in which some of these ideas were put into practice at the local level on the other. In doing so, the Belgian case, for which we have the most varied and rich source at our disposal, will be at the centre of our attention.