Since Prohibition, Americans have had an uneasy relationship with alcohol and underage drinking. After Prohibition ended in 1933, the legal drinking age was 21. During the Vietnam War it dropped to 18-years-old, yet shot back to 21 in 1984.
For some parents, teenage drinking is a rite of passage. Parents drank alcoholic beverages when they were in high school and expect that their children will do the same. Some parents, allow their children and their children's friends to drink at home "because they will drink anyway and I don't want them driving."
Others parents are by the books. In one town where I was a reporter, parents readily admitted to giving their children a urine test for drugs and alcohol when the child returned from a night out.
Whatever your style of parenting, underage drinking is against the law, and the laws governing underage drinking are something that every parent should know.
Recently in Hingham, charges were brought against a mother who allegedly hosted a party where underage drinkers were present. In Plymouth, a coach came under scruitney for being present during an event where underaged children were served alcohol.
"I attended a private party at a private house and I consumed alcohol in front of other student athletes in the program," said Plymouth North High School Baseball Coach Dwayne Follette to MyFoxBoston.com. "My son was also at that party and he also got involved in drinking some alcohol -- not to abusive levels that I know of -- (but) I took care of that situation."
What are your thought on underage drinking? No big deal, I serve my kids at home or it's against the law and that is enough for me, no underage drinking allowed. Let us know in comments your thoughts about serving minors alcohol whether in a bar or at a party in your home.