I recently got into an argument with a stranger who was trying to cut through my bike lock with a torch. This was in the middle of a crowd, and I knew he would be long gone if I waited for the police to show up. When I saw him at work, I figured that…
I became interested in the National Youth Rights Association through a passion in education reform. America’s education system is falling behind. A shocking amount of schooling is about organizing and controlling students – telling kids where to line up, keeping them still while they sit through a lecture they aren’t listening too, or making them…
NYRA’s newest chapter operates out of North Richland Hills, a suburb of Fort Worth, Texas. The chapter was started by a group of 16 year olds, most of them attending the same high school. Texas Vote16 was established on March 16, 2016. The President, Bryce Hall, had the idea for many years and found supporting…
This is a transcript of a speech I gave to the Broward County Commission in support of lowering the voting age. The Commission is now supporting a resolution to lower the voting age to sixteen. Watch video here. The Fight for Youth Suffrage By Elijah Manley Dear Broward County Board of County Commissioners, Good Morning, My name…
It is a great honor to serve as a NYRA fellow and I am excited to help out as much as I can. Orientation was an amazing experience full of reflection and insight. I really appreciated all the great discussions I had with my fellow activists and with NYRA members. The combination of lectures, discussions,…
My name is Keoni Orlando Scott-Reid and over the weekend I attended a 3 day orientation program for the National Youth Rights Association. I was exposed to a mountain of youth rights stances and and the various types of oppression youth as a whole face every single day. As a youth, I can say to…
I was completely unfamiliar with youth rights before getting involved with NYRA. As a youth myself, I experienced discrimination and ageism but always assumed society would drop its attitude toward me when I became 18. I never once thought that youth could be treated as equal citizens in my community. The idea simply never occurred…
This past weekend NYRA held a 3-day orientation for this year’s NYRA fellows. The orientation, held in Washington, DC, covered a wide range of topics including NYRA issues and strategies for going forward. The lecture sessions were integrated with great discussions about youth rights — their individual importance as well as their impact on each…
Jordan Riak, founder of Parents and Teachers Against Violence in Education (PTAVE) and long-time ally of NYRA in the campaign against corporal punishment died this week. Jordan Riak has devoted his life to stopping corporal punishment since 1974. He was a major force opposing the brutal practice both in the United States and in Australia,…
Until very recently, I thought neuroscience had put up barriers to youth rights that no argument could cross. If the teenage brain is physically incapable of handling freedoms, then that’s the end of the discussion. It doesn’t matter how much we argue about the Constitution and equality under the law—no amount of arguing can make…
