Where was this speech was given? Here is a copy of it:


Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak today.
I’m here as a teenager. But more importantly, I’m here as a person who lives under laws I did not help shape but follows rules I did not consent to. I carry responsibilities that aren’t always matched by my rights. I’m not here to argue for the removal of all limits but to ask for something more reasonable. I ask for a system that recognizes that young people are not all the same. Our freedoms should grow with our demonstrated ability to handle them.
Right now, age is used as a simple dividing line between dependence and independence. But age is a rough estimate, not a measure of actual capability. Some of us are ready to make serious decisions about our education, our work, and even our health. Others are not. The law already acknowledges this in limited ways through “mature minor” doctrines in healthcare, through part-time work, and through certain forms of consent. But these recognitions are inconsistent and incomplete.
If society can trust me to work, to contribute economically, and in some cases to make personal medical decisions, then it should also be able to trust me with a greater degree of autonomy in other areas of my life, especially when that autonomy can be demonstrated and earned.
There’s also a deeper issue of fairness. We’re expected to follow the law. In some cases we can be held legally accountable in very serious ways. We contribute through taxes on our earnings and purchases. Yet we have little to no voice in shaping the system that governs us. This raises a simple question: if we’re subject to the law, why aren’t we given a more meaningful participation in it?
I understand the concern that children need protection. That concern is valid. But overprotection can have unintended consequences. When every decision is made for us, we’re not learning how to make decisions ourselves. Independence isn’t something that suddenly appears at 18. It’s something that must be practiced, gradually, with guidance. If we delay that learning entirely, we risk entering adulthood unprepared and facing higher stakes without the experience to navigate them.
Education is a good example. Surprisingly, I’m not arguing against it. Education builds the core abilities we need to function, adapt, and remain free in a complex society. But mandatory schooling in a single standardized form does not serve everyone equally. Some thrive in traditional classrooms. Others like me do not. Some are ready for apprenticeships, self-directed learning, or early specialization. If the goal of education is to prepare us for meaningful, productive lives, then flexibility should be part of that system. Education should be a right and an opportunity, not a one-size-fits-all constraint.
Another area where this issue becomes clear is bodily autonomy and consent. In certain contexts, we’re already trusted to make deeply personal decisions such as healthcare, mental health treatment, and, in some cases, relationships. These are serious matters. If we can demonstrate understanding and responsibility in these areas, it’s reasonable to ask that our autonomy be respected more broadly while still maintaining safeguards against exploitation.
What we have today isn’t a system that consistently protects or empowers. It’s a system that is often inconsistent. Teens can be treated as capable when it’s convenient yet incapable when it comes to granting rights. That inconsistency undermines both fairness and trust.
We’re actually contributing more than is often recognized. Many of us work to help support our families. I have even started my own business. You see, we’re already participating in the economy. With that participation should come a greater degree of control over our own choices and direction.
History shows that expansions of rights are often met with the same concern: that a group isn’t ready for it. And yet, time and again, society has moved forward by recognizing that readiness is not defined by a single number, but by the ability to participate responsibly.
I’m not asking for total independence overnight. I am asking for a more balanced approach. An approach to graduated autonomy. One where rights can expand based on demonstrated capacity. One where people like me can earn greater freedom through responsibility. One where protections remain in place but don’t completely override individual agency.
This could take many forms. There could be competency-based pathways to increased decision-making power paired with more flexible education models. There should be more opportunities for youth representation in the policies that affect us. These aren’t radical ideas. They’re practical steps toward a system that better reflects reality.
I also want to acknowledge the concerns that come with this discussion. There are real risks, of course, that we might make poor decisions. There could be external pressures pushing us into unequal environments. But those risks don’t disappear by removing autonomy entirely. They’re better addressed through guidance, oversight, and gradual responsibility.
The goal of society shouldn’t be to control us until a certain age and then suddenly release us into full independence. The goal should be to prepare us by giving us the tools, the experience, and the trust we need to become capable, responsible individuals.
And the best way to do that isn’t by withholding freedom, but by teaching us how to use it.
Thank you.