With the impending doom of what could happen with SB-47, I find it important to reflect back to July 1st, 1971. This coming Saturday will be the 40th anniversary of the 26th Amendment being passed, which changed the legal voting age to be 18, instead of 21 (which it had been previously). Now, young teens face close to the same challenges teens then faced, being treated as if their citizen duty, to vote, is not of importance. Even though the reasons for the 26th Amendment were slightly different (“Old enough to fight, old enough to vote!”), the consequences remain the same. Young people should be whole-heartedly involved in the political process. In reality, by stripping them the ability to pre-register is not only taking away Civics education – that the law requires, but is also closing them out of the system. Even though July is most notably remembered for United States independence, it is important to reflect on the gains that teens made in the political world during the month too. With July 1st approaching we should not be making regressive policies that make teens even less heard, but we should be educating our future, and ensuring that young people have the voice that our ancestors worked so hard to fight for – that is what July is about anyways, right? As the legislators reconvene in July, I ask them to remember the 26th Amendment and the positive impact it had for not only young people, but the country as a whole. July should be a time for celebration for the country (young people included), not a time for regressive legislation!
Kayla and Khadijah
Winston-Salem Team
