Julia Moore, Broadcast Journalist

As I grew up partly in the States, I follow American current events more than most. When I was at BBC Radio 4, Woman’s Hour, Florida was in the midst of voting on whether the age to consent to marriage should be set at 16, 17 or 18. At the time in 25 states, there was no legal minimum age for marriage and for many under the age of 18, children can’t file for divorce either.

It was an important topic to cover due to the gender imbalance issues, obvious abuse and loss of freedom to meet one’s potential. Thankfully horrific case studies are few and far between so I used a recent case study’s powerful interview from another Radio 4 programme and featured a campaigner to explain the issue and what she was hoping would happen next.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b09qb0n9 (at 25’35”)