"Let Children Vote. Even 13-Year-Olds."

Question

by Laurence Pevsner

Still, serious arguments against children’s suffrage abound. Eighteen to 21-year-olds already vote in dismal numbers - why should we give the vote to people even younger, who probably care less? Even if they do care to vote, children don’t have the intellectual capacity or the life experience to understand complex issues. Supposing you did stick them in a polling booth, they’re likely to vote exactly as their parents tell them to - essentially giving parents double, triple, or quadruple the votes.

But we’ve heard these arguments before.

A 1910 pamphlet from the National Association Opposed to Women’s Suffrage, for example, emphasized remarkably similar objections, such as “because 90% of the women ither do not want it, or do not care” and “because 80% of the women eligible to vote are married and can only double or annul their husband’s votes.”

People of color have also suffered greatly on account of specious logic. Following the Civil War that should’ve settled the issue, white politicians and phrenologists trotted out “biology” to argue that a black person’s brain was inferior, and so black people weren’t capable of understanding the issues. The result was the literacy test, one of the most despicable stains on the history of our democracy.

The Washington Post © 2016 The Washington Post. All rights reserved. Used under license.

Question
Use the passage to answer the question.

How does the author’s use of historic examples strengthen his argument?

(1 point)
Responses

by describing how other groups went about attaining the right to vote
by describing how other groups went about attaining the right to vote

by showing how views on suffrage are influenced by popular opinion
by showing how views on suffrage are influenced by popular opinion

by explaining that some groups are more likely to vote in elections than others

Answer 1

The author's use of historic examples strengthens his argument by describing how other groups went about attaining the right to vote. By referencing the suffrage movement for women and the discriminatory practices against people of color, the author illustrates that similar arguments against expanding voting rights have persisted throughout history. This comparison suggests that the concerns about children's suffrage may also be unfounded and rooted in prejudice, reinforcing the idea that all groups deserve the right to vote regardless of age.