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The Vox Box

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  3. Do Teen Curfews Violate Rights?

Do Teen Curfews Violate Rights?

According to a CBS story,

“On Friday, Delaware's largest shopping center, the Christiana Mall, officially instituted the Parental Guidance Required program. The program prohibits teens 17 and under from entering the mall Friday or Saturday nights unless accompanied by an adult 21 or older. Each adult will be permitted to supervise four teens.”

The article goes on to say that 54 malls across the country have enacted similar policies, and that in this case, teens will be required to wear a red armband to enter the mall after business hours. Mall officials claim that they took this action after having received complaints from several businesses in the mall.

What’s more, according to usaweekend.com, is that over 700 cities in the United States have enacted teen curfew ordinances, often in efforts to reduce crime. While various civil rights organizations continue to fight such laws, this recent development in Delaware demonstrates that they may not be making the progress they would like.

Are teen curfews justified if they prove effective at reducing crime, or are they discriminatory, plain and simple?

In 2006, then-editor Steve Smith of The Spokesman-Review had the idea of starting a publication for an often forgotten audience: teenagers. The Vox Box was a continuation of the Vox, an all-student staffed newspaper published by The Spokesman-Review. High school student journalists who staffed the Vox made all content decisions as they learn about the trade of journalism. This blog's mission was to give students an opportunity to publish their voices. The Vox Box and the Vox wrapped up in June 2009, but you can follow former staffers' new blog at http://voxxiez.blogspot.com.