The Legislation Literacy club is a new club at the school that focuses on informing teens on legislation that affects them most significantly.
Their goal is to inform teens on legislation that impacts certain aspects of their lives that they might not even be familiar with.
The president of the club is Taleiya Gordon (11), the vice president is Eden Estevez (11), the secretary is Sanaa Rishi (11) and the treasurer is Frida Rodriguez (11). Their meetings are held in room 301, on the second Thursday of each month.
Gordon says, “I started Legislation Literacy because I noticed that many teens weren’t informed about legislation itself. Many teens are uninterested in learning about legislation, and many teens don’t realize the big effect that certain laws have on them.”
Gordon adds, “On a personal note, I myself am highly interested in law, and I wanted to share my passion with other students.”
Other students who are interested in law and want to be more informed about legislation that affects them can become involved in the club.
A big purpose of their club is to break the stigma that legislation only impacts adults, when in reality many laws directly impact teens as well.
Rishi says, “We hope to break this idea by educating them on laws that directly affect teens cause I mean, just cause we can’t vote and stuff doesn’t mean we’re not citizens so we still have laws that affect us.”
In their first meeting they held on October 9, they discussed the new legislation which affects the financial aid application process.
Mrs. Anderson, their club advisor, says, “They’re using relative laws and policies that apply to their age group. [At their recent meeting] everyone was engaged because that’s what they’re doing right now, and it applies to their lives. It’s just really neat how these ladies are bringing it in, I’m really impressed with them.”
They kicked off the meeting by asking its members to come up with any law that they would like to be put into effect. They then read out the responses and had people agree or disagree with the new law.
Mrs. Anderson says, “I love that it is bringing up the importance of how our country is established with this set of rules, but also allowing people to question things and talk about things.”
Mrs. Anderson also says, “Having conversations with one another at this age, especially, when you guys get to vote soon, I think is such an important thing to bring out and be a part of.”
The club hopes to create an educated circle of students who are informed and interested in the legislation that is actively affecting them.
Gordon says, “It’s beneficial for teenagers to know the laws of their state and what exactly these laws mean for them.”
With the knowledge of these laws, teens are able to plan aspects of their lives by utilizing legislation that works in their favor.
