Fact Check: Is the Age of Consent in the US Being Lowered to 4 Years Old?

In August 2020, numerous social media users shared the claim that some people were trying to lower the age of consent for sexual activity. The "new" age of consent is four years old.

The post read: "We can't buy alcohol or cigarettes until we are 21, but there are people trying to make legal age of consent 4 years old. Let that sink in. #SaveOurChildren."

The truth

The post circulating online has no source, no location is referenced, and the post did not identify the "people" that were allegedly seeking the ridiculous change in the law.

The age of consent is decided on a state-by-state basis in the United States, and the age ranges from 16 to 18 years old.

There is no evidence of any serious, concerted, or even widespread effort in any state in America to change the age of consent to 4 years old, as that age range are basically toddlers.

Some of those who commented on the post tried to associate the false claim with California's recently passed and controversial law SB 145.

Also Read: Fact Check: Did Trump Promote a Tweet Claiming Joe Biden Was Pedophile?

But while that law allows certain people convicted of sex offenses involving minors to apply for discretionary relief from having to register as sex offenders, it does not in any way affect the age of consent in California.

The "SaveOurChildren" hashtag used in the post was originally created to raise awareness of child sex trafficking.

However, the hashtag has since been used by followers of QAnon, a conspiracy theory that pushes the idea that the Trump administration will take down an alleged global ring of pedophiles led by Democrats.

Age of consent per state

Every state in America has laws that dictate at what age a person can legally consent to sexual activities. If a person has sex with someone who is below the age of consent, they are automatically guilty of statutory rape.

This is because, according to the law, the person had sex with someone who could not possibly consent to the act. Since rape is sex without consent, they are guilty of a form of rape.

In many states, the age of consent for males and females is different. There are some states wherein there is an exception to the age of consent law if the two partners are only two to three years apart.

In most of the states, punishments are harsher if one of the partners is significantly older than the other. If both of the partners are above the age of consent, then any age difference between them is allowed.

There are also states that distinguish sex as an activity between a male and a female, between 2 males or between 2 females. However, a few years ago, there were states wherein homosexual sex was illegal, regardless of age.

Now the United States Supreme Court found that the laws which prohibit consensual, private sexual conduct, including homosexual conduct, between adults are unconstitutional, and it can't be enforced by any state regardless of their beliefs.

However, some states still have those laws, which means it is not clear exactly what the age of consent for homosexual acts is in those conservatives states.