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By Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone

Democracy is not a fixed object. Ever since average people first got a say in how they’re governed, we have been expanding our sense of who the stakeholders are in our society. Initially it came via violent struggle and later via democratic reform, but our collective sense of the “self” in self-government has undergone constant revision.

We fought a revolution to extend voting rights to those without title or land. We fought a Civil War to establish that all races are equal. Women took to the streets to gain the right to vote via the 19th Amendment. During the Vietnam War, we lowered the voting age to 18. In each case, advocates overcame decades, even centuries, of opposition to giving agency to those without it, and in each case, we were better off for having done so.

The climate crisis is creating a new inflection point in the ever-evolving discussion of who the stakeholders are in our society. Cities all around the world recently filled with young people demanding we take definitive, bold action so that they can have a future that’s not a constant calamity. Greta Thunberg, age 16, led this movement. Simply put, our youth are facing an existential threat to their future and are demanding to be heard. Something as fundamental as voting seems an appropriate place to start.

In Somerville, we have approved a proposal to lower the voting age in our local elections to 16. Now we just need the State Legislature to give us permission to do so. I want to stress that this involves only our municipal elections. The community has called for this, and every single elected official in the city has come out in favor of it.

While we’re seeking to become the first through this door, we certainly won’t be the last. Youth voting is getting more attention at the state and national level thanks to leaders like Rep. Ayanna Pressley. Supporters understand that youth voting could help to increase participation in local elections. Low voter turnout at the city and town level is an issue across the country, and energizing our electorate is one of our aims here. If your daughter or son is going to vote, maybe you should too.

Some argue that only those old enough to drink should vote. But just because we set a higher age limit on some things that might be deleterious to your health, it doesn’t mean we should ban younger people from perfectly healthy social functions like civic engagement. Some claim this is an effort to get more votes for Democrats. However, local elections are nonpartisan. Candidates have no party affiliation listed next to their name on the ballot. And finally, I promise you that among the many things that threaten the future of democracy, voting is not among them.

The question that deserves serious discussion is whether 16- and 17-year-olds are up to the responsibility of voting. We should respect that people hold a variety of opinions on the subject. This is where I’d like to stress we spent a few years considering that very point. We held discussions, we held a public hearing, and we had teen groups and adults advocate for this change as did a local commission on elections.

What became clear is teens have been an overlooked segment of our population. Yet you can find teens at the epicenter of every issue affecting our community: housing, transportation, education, social justice, the opioid epidemic, climate change. You name it, they’ve lived it—and in some cases, like climate change, they will live it longer than today’s adults will.

Teens spend more time in our community than most adults. They have firsthand knowledge of our school and recreational programs. They spend more time in our libraries and in our public parks. They understand potential public safety issues to which many of our older residents might be oblivious. They also can bring a unique awareness of class and race issues to our local ballot box.

Roughly 70% of Somerville’s population is white, non-Hispanic, but our school population is majority minority. Also, despite being a fairly well-to-do community, two-thirds of our student population qualifies for free or reduced lunches. Class and race issues skew very young in our city, and we need to reach deeper into our teen populace to give those community segments proper representation.

Youth voting can give teens a foundation in civic participation they can carry forward in their lives. It’s basic good citizenship we ought to be fostering. Wherever life takes them after Somerville, registering to vote, staying informed and turning out for every election will be standard practice for them. It’s a modest step we’re ready to take.

Most of all, we need to recognize the moment in which we live. We can’t claim to be taking climate issues seriously if we’re not willing to empower the most strenuous advocates for immediate action. We’re willing to do that in Somerville. Many will follow us if the state approves our Home Rule Petition. Today’s youth are clamoring to be heard and counted. We’ve put their future at risk, so we should be willing to give them a say in our immediate present.