By Nicole Chavannes
As a 21-year-old college student who attended a public high school, I’ve seen my fair share of underage drinking. More often than not, that underage drinking was performed by teenagers behind their parents’ backs, because their parents were concerned with the legality – or rather, illegality – of underage drinking.
If Florida were to reduce the legal drinking age to 18 years of age and underage consumption of alcohol were legal with permission from a parent or legal guardian, we would have fewer lawbreakers.
Although the minimum legal drinking age is 21 in the U.S., there are several states that allow exceptions with the underage consumption of alcohol, according to the Federal Trade Commission. In fact, no less than 22 states allow minors to consume alcohol on private property with the consent of a parent or legal guardian, including Colorado, Delaware, Louisiana, Maine, Oregon and Texas. Florida, however, does not allow this exception.
To clarify, this is not an encouragement to drink illegally or provide minors with alcohol. The states that allow exceptions for consumption don’t specify what exactly is too early an age for parents to allow their children to drink, and I think it’s difficult to define where exactly to draw that line. Parents should be able to decide when their children can drink, within reason. Obviously, it’s extremely damaging for an elementary-school-aged child to consume alcohol, and there is no discernible reason for them to do so at such a young age. Once children reach adolescence, however, their potential for exposure to alcohol among friends is much higher, and I think this is when they should begin learning safe practices. There are definite dangers to consuming alcohol, especially in unsafe conditions or in excess. That, however, is entirely the point.
It makes sense to allow the consumption of alcohol in a safe, controlled environment with an experienced and responsible adult present to mediate the situation, especially when the alternative is prohibiting it to such an extent that a teenager feels the need to sneak around and consume alcohol in an unsafe environment.
All too often teenagers consume alcohol regardless of its legality, and because parents cannot even offer it to their maturing children legally, they drink it with their peers who are just as inexperienced and unaware about alcohol and its effects.
When you take into account everything that becomes legal once you turn 18, it seems ridiculous that consuming alcohol isn’t one of those things. An 18-year-old in Florida can vote for the next president of the United States, purchase tobacco, marry without parental approval and be tried as a legal adult, according to the Florida Legislature’s website. The latter “privilege” is particularly ironic, considering the fact that an 18-year-old can be charged as an adult for drinking “underage.”
18-year-olds can also join the military, invade another country and subsequently kill someone legally. Men are required to register for the Selective Service System within 30 days of their 18th birthday, according to the Selective Service System’s official website. This means that in the case of a national emergency requiring the rapid expansion of our Armed Forces, those registered would be entered in a draft and could possibly be forced to join the military.
How is it possible to be considered adult enough for these very serious privileges and responsibilities, but not adult enough to consume alcohol? For parents not to have a legal say in when their children are introduced to alcohol and for teenagers to be considered adult enough to fight and die for their country but not to consume alcohol seems inequitable. As long as drinking is done responsibly, it should be legal for both parents to decide whether their children drink in their own home and for 18-year-olds to consume alcohol.
