Some young Brits are calling for a new Brexit vote. Others argue it's undemocratic
As Brexit drags on, we hear from young people on both sides of the debate
Young people calling for a second Brexit referendum are missing out on "the fundamental basics of democracy," says the head of a pro-Leave social networking group.
"If you start letting votes sort of be manipulated into second referendums, without upholding the first referendum, you're starting to slip into a very undemocratic situation," Lucy Harris, director of Leavers of Britain, told The Current's Anna Maria Tremonti.
"It's the value we put on democracy which is most important, and that matters to every single person — not just young people, not just old people."
On Monday, British MPs voted to take over control of the stalled Brexit process from Theresa May's government. The move will allow lawmakers to vote on alternatives to the prime minister's withdrawal deal, one of which they hope can secure majority support.
Hundreds of thousands of anti-Brexiters marched through London on Saturday, calling for a new referendum on whether to leave the EU or remain.
Harris worries a second vote could get ugly.
"Last week I was in the street leafleting ... I had a guy come up to me and tell me that I should be lobotomized," Harris said.
"I mean, that's aggressive. It's disgusting. And just imagine if we're actually to have a campaign on those terms, where the country is divided, we're angry, we want to get at each other, we're not talking to one another.
"It would just be a horrible situation for everyone."
On the flip side of the debate, the leader of a pro-remain group focused on young people does want to see a second referendum.
"I find it a very curious thing to say that giving the people a vote could somehow be undemocratic," said Hugo Lucas, director of communications for Our Future Our Choice.
"I don't think it's that insulting to people to ask them if they're sure that they still want this when what is actually on the table now is so different from what was promised in 2016."
About two million young people have come of electoral age since Britain voted in 2016 to leave the European Union, according to Lucas. And a report from Our Future Our Choice shows strong pro-remain sentiment among young people compared to older voters, according to polling data.
"Young people are the ones who are going to have to make sense of this Brexit mess," he added. "It's not going to stop anytime soon."
Instead of talking at each other, Harris is trying to get young and old people, from both sides of the Brexit coin, to talk with each other.
"Pitting young people against older people, I think, is really unhealthy for society," she said.
However, Hugo argues young people are going to suffer economically under any Brexit deal.
"We are a very, very different generation to the ones that have come before," he said. "We have different priorities, and a lot of those priorities rest on continued membership of the European Union."
Click 'listen' near the top of this page to hear the full conversation.
Produced by Allie Jaynes, Danielle Carr and Imogen Birchard.