The National Youth Rights Association is dedicated to defending the freedom, equality, and rights of all young people by challenging age discrimination and prejudice.
We accomplish this by focusing on:
Protecting Our Rights
The rights of young people are violated on a daily basis. We help people defend their rights by providing:
- Information on the legal status of youth rights based on current laws at the federal, state, and local level and analysis of case law and legal precedent
- An action plan for how to respond to youth rights violations
- Strategies for reinforcing and expanding youth rights on a variety of issues
Educating Our Communities
Many people are unaware of the impact of age discrimination and prejudice on young people. We raise awareness by:
- Analyzing the negative impact on anti-youth laws and policies
- Drafting alternative solutions to anti-youth policies and advocating for their implementation
- Giving young people a platform to speak out against age discrimination and prejudice
- Challenging stereotypes of young people by through research, personal stories, and positive examples
Fighting Ageism
We believe that in order for young people to be treated fairly, we must stop ageism in as many areas as possible. To accomplish this we have:
- Overturned discriminatory laws in several states
- Lowered the voting age in several municipalities
- Launched successful campaign to change school policies
- Participated in civil litigation through the submitting of research and amici curiae in federal court cases
- Successfully encouraged dozens of businesses to drop their age discriminatory practices.
- Helped to draft legislation on various youth rights bills including testifying in front of state and local legislatures
