The age in which you are legally considered an
adult, known as the age of majority, is most commonly 18 years of age.
This is thought to be the legal threshold of adulthood when you are no longer considered
a “minor” and are now a part of the majority population.
You now assume control over yourself, your actions, and your decisions thus terminating
the legal control and responsibilities of your parent or guardian.
A pretty sobering thought for many young folks on the brink of adulthood.
So, who decided that 18 should be the age of adulthood, anyway?
Welcome to this episode of the Infographics Show, How Did 18 Become The Standard For Adulthood?
The age of majority is defined as the age at which a person is granted by law the rights
and responsibilities of an adult.
In the United States, 18 is the most common age of majority.
Some states however grant majority after a person passes high school, and still others
have it set even higher.
Alabama and Nebraska for instance, have the current age of majority at 19 while Mississippi
is at 21.
Nonetheless, the age of majority does not affect voting age which by law is set at 18
due to the twenty-sixth amendment to the constitution giving 18 year olds the right to vote in federal,
state and local elections.
Let’s just cover a few bases before we dive right into how 18 became the age of adulthood.
There are a couple terms that sound similar to the age of majority, or the legal age of
adulthood, that you should know.
The first one is the age of consent, which, like the age of majority, varies by state.
As you already know, the age of majority means that now you are legally considered an adult.
You are granted the rights and responsibilities of adulthood, like opening a bank account,
purchasing a car, renting an apartment, buying a lotto ticket, and lots of other fun and
legally contracting things.
With that right, comes great responsibility.
You now also get to be held legally accountable for your actions.
That’s a lot of pressure for someone just out of high school, but it’s also a real
eye-opener.
Welcome to the real world, kid!
The age of consent refers to the legally defined age in which a person is no longer required
to obtain consent from a parent or guardian to get married.
It also refers to the age at which a person is considered to have the capacity to voluntarily
agree to sex—with consent, of course!
Though sexual intercourse with a person under the age of consent will likely lead to criminal
charges of statutory rape or sexual assault.
So, make sure you always know how old the person you’re about to get down with actually
is!
Another term often confused with the age of majority is the age of license.
Like we mentioned before, the age of majority is the age at which a person is legally recognized
as an adult.
The age of license, however, is the age at which the government grants a person license—or
permission—to engage in certain activities, like buying and consuming alcohol and tobacco
or, if it’s legally sold in your state, cannabis products.
It also includes driving a motor vehicle, and entering into certain kinds of contracts,
like renting a car.
In some cases the age of license is different than the age of majority.
For example, you can get your driver’s license at 16 even though the age of majority is 18.
Or you can be of the age of majority but not be allowed to legally buy or consume alcohol
until reaching the age of license, which is, of course, 21.
But what if you decide that you want to be on your own before you reach the age of 18?
This would require a legal process called emancipation.
This happens when a minor is legally emancipated by the court to automatically obtain the age
of majority before their 18th birthday.
They are no longer controlled by their parents or guardian and likewise, the parents or guardian
are freed of responsibility toward the emancipated child.
Most jurisdictions consider minors who marry to be automatically emancipated and to have
obtained the age of majority status.
Alright, so now that we’ve covered those bases, let’s go back to where all this started.
During World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt lowered the minimum age for the
military draft to 18 even though the voting age had historically been 21.
This outraged many and a rally cry was born: “Old enough to fight, old enough to vote”
became the slogan of the youth voting rights movement.
In 1942, the slogan prompted Democratic congressman, Jennings Randolph from West Virginia to introduce
federal legislation to lower the voting age to 18.
It was Randolph’s faith in America’s youth that really drove this effort.
He said “They possess a great social conscience, are perplexed by the injustices in this world
and are anxious to rectify those ills.”
And in 1943, Georgia became the first state to lower its voting age to 18.
Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Lyndon B. Johnson both greatly supported Randolph’s
cause.
Eisenhower was the first president to publicly voice his support for a constitutional amendment
that would lower the voting age.
In his 1954 State of the Union address he said: “For years our citizens between the
ages of 18 and 21 have, in time of peril, been summoned to fight for America.
They should participate in the more political process that produces this fateful summons.”
In the late 1960’s with the US involved in the long and costly Vietnam War, youth
voting rights activists held marches and demonstrations demanding the attention of lawmakers to the
injustice and hypocrisy of drafting young men who were denied the right to vote.
In 1969, 60 resolutions were introduced to Congress that would lower the voting age to
18, but none of those resolutions ever came to anything.
In 1970 Congress passed a bill that extended and amended the Voting Rights Act of 1965
which outlawed discriminatory voting practices.
The new bill contained a provision that lowered the voting age to 18 in federal, state and
local elections.
President Richard M. Nixon signed the bill into law though he issued a public statement
declaring the provision to be unconstitutional.
He said “Although I strongly favor the 18 year-old vote, I believe—along with most
of the nation’s leading constitutional scholars—that Congress has no power to enact it by simple
stature, but rather it requires a constitutional amendment.”
In the 1970 case Oregon v Mitchell, the US Supreme Court was tasked with reviewing the
constitutionality of the provision.
A divided Supreme Court ruled that Congress had the authority to lower the voting age
in federal elections, but lacked the power to do so for state and local elections.
Under this verdict, 18-20 year olds were now eligible to vote for president and vice president,
but not eligible to vote for state officials in the same election.
Naturally, this outraged many resulting in large public demonstrations led by the youth
who were being drafted but not allowed the right to vote.
This was the groundwork that paved the way for a Constitutional amendment.
Congress proposed the 26th Amendment which provides “The right of citizens of the United
States, who are 18 years of age or older, to vote, shall not be denied or abridged by
the United States or any state on account of age.”
On March 10th, 1971, The US Senate voted unanimously in favor of the proposed amendment.
After an overwhelmingly in-favor House vote on March 23rd, the 26th Amendment went to
the states for ratification.
In less than four months, the necessary three-fourths of state legislature ratified the 26th Amendment
making it the shortest ratification period of any constitutional amendment.
President Nixon signed it into law that July.
At a White House ceremony attended by 500 newly eligible voters, Nixon said: “The
reason I believe that your generation, the 11 million new voters, will do so much for
America… is that you will infuse into this nation some idealism, some courage, some stamina,
and some high moral purpose that this country always needs.”
The Senate Report accompanying the 26th Amendment states that it was proposed for three main
reasons: First: “Younger citizens are fully mature enough to vote.”
Most people between the ages of 18 and 21 had finished high school and had received
some sort of higher education.
Secondly: “18 year olds bear all or most of an adult’s responsibilities.”
This consideration was especially important since more than 11,000 Americans killed in
Vietnam were under the age of 20.
Third: Young voters should be given the opportunity “to influence our society in a peaceful
and constructive manner.”
Excluding 18 year olds from the political process resulted in violent protests against
the government.
Tell us what you think.
Do you think 18 years old is a good age for a person to be considered an adult?
Or do you feel it should be 21, like in the old days?
Let us know what you think and why in the comments!
Also be sure to check out our other video, Millenials vs Generation Y - How Do They Compare?!
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