RMN'S Blog
The Drinking Age Law for Beer
Did you know the drinking age in America used to be different for men and women?
In Oklahoma, beer was described as a non-intoxicating beverage because of its low alcohol content. At one point in time, beer was only allowed to be purchased by men over the age of 21. Women, on the other hand, were not allowed to purchase beer unless they were 18 and older. This caused a feud between the genders because of unfair treatment. In this state, women were seen as more responsible when it came to consuming alcohol than men, which is why they were allowed to purchase it at the age of 18.
In the Craig v. Boren case, the plaintiff claimed the law was discriminatory on the basis of gender, and violated the equal protection rights under the 14th Amendment.
The 14th Amendment in the United States was as adopted to the Constitution on July 9, 1868 after the Civil War and the Reconstruction. The amendment protects those born or naturalized in this country, and states that they are to be protected under the law no matter his or her religion, gender, ethnicity or race. The state of Oklahoma claimed to have made this age limitation law because of statistical evidence based on the differentiation of men and women and their consumption of alcohol.
The state also claimed to have put the law in place to enhance traffic safety, since statistics presented showed men tend to drink and drive more often than women. However, the statistics used in the case did not properly demonstrate a significant difference enough for the law to be in place, and to enhance traffic safety remarkably.
At the end of the trial, it was concluded that the law was unconstitutional. This case brought to light the standard of “intermediate scrutiny” under the equal protection clause, which applies to statutes and policies that are discriminatory based on gender.
In conclusion, this case gives you a different perspective when it comes to gender discrimination because it is usually seen among issues dealing with women, and male discrimination is not common around the world.
