As far as I know, starving, beating and molesting kids have been considered Bad Things for a very long time, so I'm not sure we're talking about some newfangled set of standards here.
I don’t think they were back then either. I also don’t think that was the intent when they were established. What I really blame them for is lack of oversight and turning a blind eye to abuses but that went on long after they were established and all parties were guilty.