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WHEREAS, Fifty years ago, the 26th Amendment to the United States Constitution took effect, lowering the universal voting age in America from 21 years to 18 years. Millions of young Americans were extended the right to vote, empowering more young people than ever before to help shape our country; and,
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WHEREAS, The right to vote has been secured by generations of leaders over our history, from the women's groups of the early 20th century to the civil rights activists of the 1960s. For young people, the movement to lower America's voting age took years of hard work and persistent advocacy to make the dream a reality. Yet, once proposed in Congress in 1971, the 26th Amendment was ratified in the shortest time span of any Constitutional Amendment in American history; and,
WHEREAS, The State of Pennsylvania ratified the 26th amendment on April 27th, 1971; and,
WHEREAS, On July 5th, 1971, President Richard Nixon signed the 26th amendment into law after three-fourths of the States had ratified the amendment, allowing millions of new young people to vote in the 1972 election; and,
WHEREAS, As we mark the 50th anniversary of the passage of the 26th Amendment, we reflect on its impact to engage young adults in becoming active participants in American democracy; and,
WHEREAS, Today, young adults across America continue to exercise this enormous responsibility of citizenship. Countless young people are involved in the political process, dedicated to ensuring their voices are heard; and,
WHEREAS, Today we must renew the effort to invest in strengthening history and civic learning and to ensure that civic learning opportunities are delivered equitably throughout the country; and,
WHEREAS, Ideas from young Americans are important to us as elected officials, and they will shape the future of our Nation. We are committed to supporting and developing young leaders from all beliefs and backgrounds, and from urban and rural communities alike; and,
WHEREAS, ...
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