Funny Pictures of the 26th Amendment
Civics
Teaching the 26th Amendment With The New York Times
Fifty years ago, 18- to 20-year-olds were guaranteed the right to vote. This teaching resource uses primary sources to help students explore the history and significance of this important expansion of voting rights.
Note to our audience: Most of our Lessons of the Day include warm-up activities, critical thinking questions and going-further activities that are written directly to students. Occasionally, however, we create a more in-depth exploration of a particular theme intended to inspire teachers, as we have done here. Have a look and tell us what you think!
The 26th Amendment was ratified fifty years ago, on July 1, 1971. It lowered the voting age to 18 from 21 and prohibited the denial or infringement of the right to vote "on account of age." The amendment allowed millions of young Americans to vote, and is the last time the United States significantly expanded voting rights.
To examine and celebrate the 26th Amendment in the classroom, here are some lesson ideas and activities using archival and current articles and Opinion pieces from The New York Times.
Changing public opinion
A constitutional amendment to allow voting at age 18 was first introduced in Congress in 1942. In the 1940s and 1950s, a few key figures and organizations pushed for youth voting rights nationally and locally, and a few states and territories lowered their voting ages. Then, in the 1960s, the number of supporters expanded, with a majority of states and territories considering youth enfranchisement. These campaigns culminated in the emergence of a youth franchise movement in 1969-71.
Over the years, The New York Times reported and wrote editorials on these efforts and campaigns. These two Times articles show how public opinion on the topic changed from 1943 to 1971:
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George Gallup, "Lower Voting Age is Gaining in Favor" (April 9, 1943)
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"60% in Poll Favor Local Voting at 18" (April 25, 1971)
After reading these articles, students might answer the following questions:
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What changes do you notice over these years? Consider both the findings and what questions the polls asked.
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Does anything surprise you about these findings?
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What reason is given for supporting youth voting rights in 1943?
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Why did the 1971 poll ask about youth voting only in state and local elections?
Arguments for and against
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The Times published editorials about lowering the voting age on three occasions. President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1954 and President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968 endorsed lowering the voting age and spurred media coverage on the matter, as well as a debate at the New York State Constitutional Convention in 1967.
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"Eighteen Is Too Young" (May 23, 1954)
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"The Right Voting Age" (July 7, 1967)
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"Harnessing the Youth Tide" (June 30, 1968)
After reading these editorials, students might examine the arguments for and against lowering the voting age.
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What arguments did Times editors make for opposing the new voting age in the first editorial in 1954? How did they disagree with President Eisenhower?
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What arguments against lowering the voting age did they make in the second editorial in 1967?
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What arguments did the Times editors make in 1968 in support? How did they agree with President Johnson?
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Whether for or against the new voting age, these editorials note the progress toward youth voting rights in the states over the years. Which states acted to enfranchise their young citizens (although not always at 18) by 1968?
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All three editorials point out that the social meanings attached to an age aren't set in stone, but instead can vary and change depending on time and place. What do you think of that?
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Which editorial's arguments do you find the most persuasive and why?
Activity: Using these editorials, make a list or write an essay on the most prominent and popular arguments for and against youth voting rights.
'60s youth culture and the new voting age
Perceptions of American youth culture and politics in the 1960s shaped support for and against lowering the voting age.
In making his case for the change in his Opinion piece "If the 18-Year-Olds Get the Vote …" (July 7, 1968), Andrew Hacker, a government professor at Cornell University at the time, challenged the media's portrayal of young Americans as political radicals or countercultural hippies. But he also pointed out how the generation from the '60s differed from their parents.
Along with reading Mr. Hacker's article, students can learn more about a movie he discussed, "Wild in the Streets," which exploited this stereotypical image of youth. Read this review of the 2016 DVD or watch the original trailer, embedded above.
Students might consider the following questions after reading Mr. Hacker's article:
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According to Mr. Hacker, what were common perceptions and misperceptions of 18- to 21-year-olds in 1968? How are they similar or different from perceptions of young people today?
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What arguments does Mr. Hacker make in favor of lowering the voting age? Do you find them compelling? Why or why not?
With the founding of the Youth Franchise Coalition (Y.F.C.) in 1969, a national organization was set to push for youth voting rights. At their first meeting, members of the Y.F.C. heard from two longtime advocates of the lower voting age: Senator Jennings Randolph, Democrat of West Virginia, and Senator Birch Bayh, Democrat of Indiana. The article "Young Lobby Group Chided on Militancy" (Feb. 6, 1969) summarizes the senators' message about youth culture, politics and voting. What are they worried about, and what do they want the Y.F.C. members to do about it? What do you think about the senators' message?
The next year at Senate subcommittee hearings on lowering the voting age, a number of witnesses criticized the stereotyping of young Americans in the media. Do we see this kind of media framing of young people today?
Strategies for lowering the voting age
The Youth Franchise Coalition represented the culmination of a 30-year effort to lower the voting age. Bringing together student and youth organizers with adult allies, the Y.F.C. worked at the federal level to add an amendment to the U.S. Constitution. They also supported state-level campaigns, which worked to achieve state constitutional amendments. The first success was in Georgia in 1943.
The article "Lower Voting Age Sought for State: New Group Asks Franchise for 18-Year-Olds" (Jan. 15, 1967) reports on the campaign in New York, aimed at the state's 1967 constitutional convention. After reading the article, students can discuss the following questions.
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What was the goal of the Fair Franchise Coalition in New York? What steps did it involve?
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What strategies did they pursue to achieve each of those steps toward their goal?
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You can also consider what arguments John Patrick Conroy, the founder of the coalition, made for lowering the voting age.
States' rights or federal power?
Looking at the challenges involved in getting each state to pass legislation, including New York, proponents of lowering the voting age pushed Congress to enact a uniform voting age across the nation. But this was controversial. At stake was the relationship between states' rights and federal power, an issue that originated with the nation's founding.
Advocates of states' rights, citing Article I, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution, argued they had the right to determine the minimum age for voting in their states, not Congress. Those in favor of congressional action cited Article I, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution. They believed that the power to regulate elections belonged to the states in the first instance, but that Congress "may" step in at crucial times, as happened with the 15th and 19th Amendments.
The article "18-Year Voting Age Opposed by Russell" (Jan. 11, 1954) reports on one senator's opposition to a federal law lowering the voting age to 18. After reading, students can consider the following questions.
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Who was Senator Richard B. Russell?
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What arguments did he make for states determining voting qualifications?
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What do you notice about his language? What else was going on at the time that may have contributed to his heightened states' rights rhetoric?
Ratification of the 26th Amendment
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Although states' rights opposition to federal action lowering the voting age continued, success came in 1971, after a complex series of events. The Voting Rights Act of 1970 included the change. But the Supreme Court's decision in Oregon v. Mitchell (1970) upheld youth suffrage for federal elections only, necessitating action on the 26th Amendment the next year to cover 18-year-olds voting at the state and local level.
On March 23, 1971, Congress passed what would become the 26th Amendment. The amendment then went out to the states for ratification, a process that allowed states to have their say, which they did. The speed of ratification was unprecedented. Within three months, the required three-quarters (38 states) had ratified. Vying for first place, five states — Connecticut, Delaware, Minnesota, Tennessee and Washington — ratified the same day Congress approved it. Later, Alabama, Ohio, Oklahoma and North Carolina competed for the 38th spot.
Articles on ratification by the states demonstrate the overwhelming support for the 26th Amendment as well as the arguments of opponents.
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"Jersey Is 27th State to Approve Lowering Age for Voting to 18" (May 4, 1971)
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"Albany Backs U.S. Amendment Lowering the Voting Age to 18" (June 3, 1971)
After reading these two articles, students may consider these questions:
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What were the reasons offered by state legislators for and against ratification?
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How did the 26th Amendment affect ongoing efforts at the state level to lower the voting age?
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Support for the 26th Amendment was bipartisan, with Democrats and Republicans voting for it both in Congress and in the state legislatures. But what does the New York Democrat Joseph Zaretski say about bipartisanship? In contrast to Mr. Zaretski, why might it be important to recognize the extension of voting rights to 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds as a nonpartisan issue?
The youth vote
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What has happened since July 1, 1971, when the ratification of the 26th Amendment guaranteed young people 18 and older the right to vote?
Voter turnout: Young people have historically voted less frequently than other age groups, though voter turnout for 18- to 29-years-olds reached historical highs for both the 2018 midterm and 2020 presidential elections. Ask students to look at this graph from the U.S. Elections Project, and compare voting trends among age groups as well as note the change over time in voting rates for 18- to 29-year-olds. What do you notice? What do you wonder? What prediction can you make about youth voting rates in the next election?
Then, invite students to read the 2020 article "Why Don't Young People Vote, and What Can Be Done About It?" — which compares youth voter turnout in 24 countries. The article suggests reasons young people vote less often, and provides possible short- and long-term interventions to increase participation. Which reasons do you think are most important? Which recommendations do you think will be most effective? Why?
Issues important to young people: Student activism in the 1960s, and particularly anger about the Vietnam War and the military draft, energized a movement to lower the voting age. "Old enough to fight, old enough to vote," a slogan used by students from World War II through the Vietnam War illustrates youth frustration with the voting age at the time, 21.
Today there is no military draft like there was in the 1960s and '70s. Ask students: In your opinion, what are the issues that should drive young people to the polls today? Make a list and briefly explain why each is important.
When you turn 18, do you plan to vote in midterm elections? If you are 18, will you vote in the next election? Why or why not?
Voting at 16 today
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Across the United States and the world, young people are working to lower the voting age to 16. Some American cities and school districts as well as countries like Austria and Scotland have already lowered their voting age to 16. Calls and campaigns for the change multiply within the context of climate crisis, gun violence and police brutality — all of which affect young people disproportionately.
There are lots of materials available for students to research and debate this issue. Many of the arguments for and against voting at 16 echo those made earlier with the 26th Amendment. There are other connections as well in terms of public opinion and strategies. Here are a few useful articles, starting with a winner of our Fifth Annual Student Editorial Contest.
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Kathryn Zaia, "The Case for Lowering the Voting Age" (June 6, 2018 — a winning essay by a 14-year-old)
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Maggie Astor, "16-Year-Olds Want a Vote. Fifty Years Ago, So Did 18-Year-Olds" (May 19, 2019)
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Yamiche Alcindor, "Campaign to Lower Voting Age to 16 in Local Races Ignites a Debate" (Dec. 9, 2015)
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Laurence Steinberg, "Why We Should Lower the Voting Age to 16" (March 2, 2018)
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Lyman Stone, "Give Kids the Right to Vote" (Sept. 1, 2021)
Jennifer Frost teaches U.S. history at the University of Auckland and is the author of the forthcoming "Let Us Vote!" Youth Voting Rights and the 26th Amendment.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/13/learning/lesson-plans/teaching-the-26th-amendment-with-the-new-york-times.html
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