Just like all other Americans, young Americans pay taxes. In fact, they pay a lot of taxes. Teens pay an estimated $9.7 billion dollars in sales taxes alone.4 Not to mention many millions of taxes on income, according to the IRS, “You may be a teen, you may not even have a permanent job, but you have to pay taxes on the money you earn.”5 And teens do work: 80% of high school students work at some point before graduation.6 Youth pay billions in taxes to state, local, and federal governments yet they have absolutely no say over how much is taken. This is what the American Revolution was fought over; this is taxation without representation. In addition to being affected by taxes, young people are affected by every other law that Americans live …show more content…
Denying youth the right to vote isn’t the same as denying women or racial minorities, according to opponents, since in a few years young people will grow up and be able to vote. Why go through the trouble to lower the age to 16 when after two years they’ll be able to vote anyways? Were it that simple, then perhaps, but it isn’t. Would it be acceptable to limit the right to vote to those with a certain income, reasoning that it is a flexible standard, those will less income must only work harder or wait till they too make enough to vote? No it wouldn’t. Voters vote based on their individual circumstances, when those circumstances change often so do their voting habits. The concerns of a 14-year-old are different than that of a 24-year-old, just as the concerns of a poor man differ from that of a rich man. The beliefs and priorities of 16-year-olds as a class are unique to them; we cannot expect former 16-year-olds to have as accurate a perspective as those who are currently that age. If we care at all about the needs and desires of youth, they must be allowed to vote for …show more content…
“We do not deprive a senile person of this right, nor do we deprive any of the millions of alcoholics, neurotics, psychotics and assorted fanatics who live outside hospitals of it. We seldom ever prevent those who are hospitalized for mental illness from voting.” Even beyond senile, neurotic, and psychotic adults, regular adults often do not meet the unrealistic standard opponents to youth voting propose. Turn on the Tonight Show one night and see the collection of adult buffoons who can’t tell Jay Leno who the vice-president is, or who have forgotten how many states are in this country. Yet these adults are happily given the right to vote. The fact is, intelligence or maturity is not the basis upon which the right to vote is granted, if that were the case all voters would need to pass a test before voting. Though “…under voting rights jurisprudence, literacy tests are highly suspect (and indeed are banned under federal law), and lack of education or information about election issues is not a basis for withholding the franchise.” Youth shouldn’t be held to a stricter standard than adults; lower the voting age. Furthermore, even the federal government agrees that most youth have the necessary knowledge to vote. The Voting Rights Act
The young people are now able to embrace the constitution and civic education courtesy of the 26th amendment. Most of the 18-year olds become more responsible and start acting as adults who put matters of national concern into great consideration. The young people are able to exchange nationalistic ideas and come up with solutions to some of the matters affecting the nation. The flexibility of the constitution has inspired patriotism especially from the younger generations who identify with it because it is tailored to cater for their ever-changing needs and challenges. Many of the young people are able to participate in measures taken by the government in times of calamity such as hurricanes through volunteering as rescuers or giving contributions to the people affected by such
Teenagers play an important role in society since they are old enough to have their own opinions but aren’t regarded by adults to have opinions worth sharing. Song highlights many important ideas like teenagers have a lot to do with worldwide issues such as gun control and LGBT rights. “Like adults, teens deserve to speak and to have the opportunity to be heard, and we deserve the respect that any other adult would expect. We shouldn’t be counted out just for our age when many of us are mature beyond our years. We shouldn’t be belittled or disregarded for having the audacity to believe we can make a difference.(“Why More Adults Need to Value Teenage Voices by Isabel Song)” Song believes that not all teenagers should be stereotyped as lazy, selfish, and arrogant because their voices should be counted in society. If adults keep on neglecting on teenagers, they won’t see the amazing things that teenagers are doing right now for the
It’s very unsettling to know that there was a six percent decrease in young voters (ages 18-29) in the 2012 election compared to 2008 (Circle Youth data). In 2007 the National Conference of State Legislatures publicly released a report and data set on voter turnout in democratic countries. This is a quote from that report titled Getting out the Vote, “It should be noted that in 1972, 18-year-olds were added to the eligible voting population, thus decreasing the percentages. Nonetheless, voter tu...
Considering the delegates that are currently running for office, a voter should have a vast level of understanding regarding the intentions of each and every candidate. Arguing whether to raise or lower the age limit for the right to vote has raised many speculations as to how it would affect the economy. There are pros and cons within both sides of the argument, but any decisions made by the powers that be will have an adverse effect on today’s society if it is placed in the hands of the younger generation. Therefore, raising the voting age to twenty-one is a better way of making sure that voters are more aware and would be more equipped to making a more sound decision rather than lowering
Many students wonder why they should take Government class. They think that they are not affected by the actions of our government, or that learning about it will not help them at all in their life. Or worse, they think that they have no power to influence the government because of their age. Fortunately, none of these things are true. The United States Government is a big part of the lives of all American citizens, and that includes those who are under eighteen years old.
Today in America, less than half of young voters between the ages of 18 and 24 vote (TheBestColleges.org). What most of these new adults fail to realize, is that their government depends on them to vote and elect new leaders to represent their country. Many of them make excuses to avoid voting, when really, they benefit most from voting.
For example, Youth.com states, “Teen pregnancy costs U.S. taxpayers about $11 billion per year due to increased health care and foster care, increased incarceration rates among children of teen parents, and lost tax revenue because of lower educational attainment and income among teen mothers.” In other words, when teens get pregnant, they use to leave school. Therefore, their job opportunities are lesser provoking their reliance in public help. Unfortunately, workers and taxpayers are the ones who pay for it without having to do with their
Teenagers dropping out of high school affect every single person in America. However, most people do not understand why they should personally concern themselves with one of the most stereotyped subsets of the United States’ population. One unacknowledged fact about dropouts is that they will, over the course of their lifetime, cost the United States government $72,000 while high school graduates will benefit the government $315,000 (Emery). This affects every person in America. Taxpayers and their families are forced to pay for the services high school dropouts need. Such services include food stamps, welfare, incarceration costs, and even healthcare. Since high school dropouts are expected to make drastically less money than their classmates who did graduate, they need to rely on the aforementioned services at some point in their life; some high school dropouts rely on government assistance throughout their entire life. High school dropouts are also 63 times more likely to become incarcerated than college graduates (Breslow). This also puts a huge strain on taxpayers and their families with the cost to run prisons rising each year.
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve asked my parents for money for the movies or for the mall. Usually, they tell me to get a job or to be more responsible with the things I already have. The same thing is true for teens my age all around the world. What’s the solution, you may ask? One word, jobs. What would happen if the legal working age was changed from the average 16 years old to 13 years old?
As with any other election in the U.S., it is illegal to deny a citizen’s right to vote based on race, sex, or age for those eighteen or older. Beyond these basic rules, it is left up to the state legislatures to manage a citizen’s eligibility to
Although there are 44 million eligible young voters ages 18-29, in 2012 only 45% of them voted. These young people make up one fifth, or 21%, of the eligible voting population, yet they often do not vote. Voting is a tremendous gift. Young people in many other countries around the world have to fight to gain this right. In America, voting is often taken for granted by all age groups, but the youth take it for granted the most. In this paper, the reason why young people do not vote will be explored and solutions as to how to get them to vote will be proposed.
“Only 6 in 10 eligible Americans vote in presidential elections, and turnout for midterm elections is typically much lower, around 33 percent of eligible voters; for local elections, turnout is even lower,” (217). Through the lack of voting there is not enough of the popular voice being heard. There need to be a jumpstart on the younger generation to care for what is happening around them. It should not just be the older generation voting on laws, which are going to have a bigger impact on this current generation than the older generation. Our first amendment states, ““Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” (Cornell University Law School). Through this right, our Founding Fathers allowed the citizens of the United States of America to voice their option without the fear of harm. To have the freedom of speech is not seen in ever country but in the U.S., this right should allow everyone to feel free to state their options. The turnout for voting should not be this low, but is, as citizens have not been coming out to vote in the past few
In “You’re 16, You’re Beautiful and You’re a Voter,” author Anya Kamenetz states her belief that the voting age should be lowered to sixteen. Kamenetz gives several premises to her argument.
Electoral laws and rules are set as standards that an individual must meet to vote. For example, the individual must be at least 18 years old, a U.S. citizen, and in some states, if the person is a felon, he cannot vote (Module 6 Lecture 2). Not everyone falls under these requirements and those who don’t will not be able to vote. There are also instances that people decide not to vote, whether they didn’t have time to register or just personal choice. This is completely unacceptable as the opinion of every eligible American matters.
Every citizen, whether young or old, wealthy or poor, property owners or property-less, pays taxes to help finance governmental functions. Every business pays taxes, which almost certainly enter into the prices the consumers pay. The wages of the workers are withheld for income taxes. No one can avoid paying taxes.