Identifying victims: child abuse and death in Canadian families.

This study examines the murder and abuse of children in Canada in the context of the commonplace of much violence and death and explores the shifting response of observers over more than a century. A review of the cases of three children who died at the hands of their caregivers in the late 20th century exposes mainstream and official preoccupation with the failures of individuals and of welfare systems rather than with the systemic disadvantage experienced by mothers and children alike.