Recently the essays we wrote in English for the Kansas State Writing Assessment were handed back to us. I chose the topic "How to Celebrate Graduation Parties in a Safe Manner" but used it as an excuse to get up on my soap box about lowering the drinking age.
For many people, turning eighteen is a huge milestone in the long journey to "growing up," largely in part to the many privileges granted at this age. At eighteen, one is allowed to vote as a legal citizen. At eighteen, one is allowed to make the life-altering commitment of marriage. At eighteen, one is allowed to purchase, consume, and become addicted to tobacco products that will slowly poison the body to death throughout a lifetime. Perhaps the privilege of the most consequence, however, is the right to serve in the Armed Forces - the choice to fight and potentially die for one's country. With all of these responsibilities in mind, then, we must ask ourselves: why does the legal drinking age remain at twenty-one years of age? The response to this question has always been that "highschoolers simply aren't mature enough to handle it yet." The fact that juvenile alcohol abuse among highschoolers and the parties that they host, especially graduation parties, may seem to support this statement. However, to fully understand the problem of the status quo we must analyze the facts, deduce the true causes of the situation at hand, and take whatever steps necessary to solve it. It will soon become evident that the drinking age itself is the barrier to safe graduation parties.
First of all, we must discuss why the drinking age is such a problem with the teenage age group in America. The fascination with this beverage is centered on one thing: the fact that they cannot have it. Alcohol then provides another avenue for rebellion; it is "the forbidden elixir of coolness." In addition, it is even mistakenly perceived as a symbol of adulthood; because all of the "grown-ups" are doing it, kids wish to imitate adults in order to gain the same "grown-up" image. In sum, there is an obvious lack of familiarization with alcohol among American families in our society. We instead choose to instill in our children's minds that alcohol is a dirty, dangerous thing to avoid at all costs, and as a result they do not receive the proper education on it. Our problem did not start at a high school drinking party; it is a product of a misinformed childhood.
In other cultures - namely in Britain, France, Germany, Spain, and Canada - society does not view alcohol as a "big deal" whatsoever. It is introduced in the home to its members at an early age, and as time passes never becomes something to pay much attention to. These countries, of course, have no "epidemic of teenage lushes," even though teens can legally consume alcoholic beverages there. In contrast, American society has seemed to put extreme overemphasis on alcohol, and it should be of no surprise that American teenagers are continually attracted to it like magnets. Drinking may not be legal for our youngsters, yet they seem to successfully obtain it time and time again anyway. In fact, 90 percent of U.S. teenagers consume alcohol on a regular basis. The scary thing is that when juveniles do come into possession of potentially harmful substance they have not had the proper education on, it is in a completely unsupervised environment in which the users are open to reckless and irresponsible behavior. Clearly, not only is the twenty-one age restriction ineffective, but it is also adding fuel to the fire of alcohol abuse.
We now come to the most important part of our analysis: what can be done to end juvenile alcohol abuse and ensure the safety of American graduation parties? U.S. driving policies may give a good explanation for this. Most would agree that it would be a ridiculous idea to tell our children to "just say no" to driving, fail to teach them how to drive through experience, and then hand them a set of keys on their twenty-first birthday, expecting them to be safe drivers. No - instead, we issue permits at certain ages to steadily prepare our young ones to be responsible. Therefore, I offer the following suggestion: a "learner's permit" system for juvenile alcohol consumption. Under such a system, drinking licenses would be issued starting at sixteen years of age, which would allow the holders to consume a limited amount of alcohol while under the supervision of a parent or legal guardian. As the "student" progressed through high school, new educational programs would be implemented with a specific focus on the importance of moderation, as opposed to the prohibitionist strategy of the status quo. Upon completion of their senior year of high school, students would be eligible to receive a drinking license for the individual and unsupervised consumption of alcohol. By this time, juveniles will have obtained the proper knowledge of the substance and how to demonstrate responsible use of it.
A problem has clearly been identified with the lack of safety in high school graduation drinking parties. Year after year, we sit by and witness the damaging effects these celebrations have on our teenagers, communities, and society as a whole. However, now is the time to take a stand and fight for more than the same old policies and prohibitionist attitude that has failed us time and time again. Now is the time for us all to realize the true cause of why alcohol abuse is so prevalent among American juveniles. Now is the time to spread the word and fight for the implementation of a learner's permit system for safe juvenile alcohol consumption. If we do, then we will see graduating teenagers celebrate as reliable and responsible adults - even in the presence of alcohol.
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