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Should minors have rights?
If so, to what extent should they be given these rights, and at what age?

At first glance many readers will immediately reject the idea of minors rights.
As a mother of 3 teens, I can see both sides of the argument.

The older generations seem to have complete control over what our young people do and do not do. In some cases this is good. In many cases it is not so good.

What we have found, in our home in small town America, is that often those with the rights violate those without. There is a lot of animosity directed at teens, by adults. They are judged by how they dress, how they wear their hair, or just by "first impressions."

For most "minority populations" protection from discrimination is a matter of law. It is illegal to judge another human based on appearances (skin color, ethnicity, age- in cases of older people that is- or religious affiliation etc...) yet it is still quite legal and acceptable to do this to teens, based only on their appearance.
It is illegal for store security guards to profile African, Latino or Arab Americans based on their appearance, yet it is still a widely practiced act, to profile teens, based on how they are dressed, or just simply because they are teens.

When we see violence such as we have seen this past decade, with Columbine and the Virginia Tech School Shootings being the first incidents to come to all of our minds, I would urge adults to consider whether we are actually looking at an oppressed people (our youth) retaliating against the adult world, which excludes, and oppresses them in so many ways.

Should our young people have a vote in who will run our country?
Should they have some say in local decision making processes, since they too are citizens, and the decisions made by adults often negatively impact their lives.
Should our youth be seen as valuable contributors to our society, and given the opportunities to become such, or should they be "second-class citizens" with little no or no say?

Many teens are angry because the adults who are in power have little or no concern as to their welfare. Adult decision makers look out for their own interests, promote their own ideas and seek to impact the communities in ways which benefit themselves.
Many of these adult decision makers are still of the belief that "children should be seen and not heard" and actively work toward suppressing and oppressing America's youth.

I believe that minors rights is the last major frontier that America must cross, in order

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