Rep. Moulton Backs Teen's Push to Lower Voting Age
Re “Youth activist pushes for lower voting age” (Metro, Feb. 11): Thank you for telling Sydney Down’s story. I am proud of her advocacy, and I support her cause.
Americans put a lot of faith in 16-year-olds. We let them drive, hire them at our businesses, and make them pay taxes.
Of all places, Boston knows the injustice of taxation without representation. The fact that we require working 16-year-olds to pay taxes but give them no say in that process is reason enough to lower the voting age. But Down makes an even stronger case: We know that voting at an early age helps encourage civic habits for life. What’s more, her generation is directly affected by Congress’s inaction on gun violence, climate change, and financial policies such as student loan interest rates in ways that most older politicians are not.
In June, I signed on to a constitutional amendment by Representative Grace Meng of New York that would lower the voting age to 16.
The new generation of leaders in our country, such as Down, deserve a voice.
US Representative Seth Moulton
Salem
By: U.S. Representative Seth Moulton
Source: The Boston Globe