When I think of ageism I have to be honest, I don't know where I would place myself. I just turned 20 years old about four months ago, so I still see myself as a teenager. It's weird when other people see or refer to me as a young adult. I associate it negatively, from a selfish standpoint of course. I think of bills, stress, and being on my own. I came to college when I was 17 years old, so I've pretty much been in this 'adult' world for a few years now. I don't have any family in Austin so when I first moved to Austin I was terrified, but strangely excited. It's funny, when I was younger I couldn't wait to grow up! Now that I am all grown up, I want to be 'young' again.
I turned the list under "Internalized Ageism" in to reversed form from what the opposite end would feel like. Maybe some people don't feel this way, but I have experienced this. It seems like both ends of the spectrum have a lot in common.
- We do not have as much life experience as the people around us
- We are not taken seriously
- We do not feel as if older adults want to hear what we have to say
- We are flattered to be called "mature"
- We like that we are able to be to do certain things (drinking, driving, etc.)
- We are pressured about our future
The real list has a lot of negative point on there. Feelings of devaluing, irritation, and a lack of self worth was very prominent. I think this could quite possibly stem from the fact that the older generations are being put out of their jobs. I read an article saying that factories and jobs are starting to hire younger people because the work can be done faster and at a cheaper rate. I think that is wrong because older people have more experience and knowledge. The work might be slower, but could it be that the quality would be higher?
"1 million to 3 million Americans sixty-five and older have been injured, exploited, or otherwise mistreated by someone on whom they depend for care or protection."
This.is.social.injustice. That is a horrible statistic to read! That is also unacceptable. I use to volunteer at a nursing home and I see how the job can be stressful, but whatever the case, it is never okay to injure, exploit, or mistreat someone who is at your mercy.
It is greatly upsetting to see those statistics about elder mis-treatment. Sometimes I wonder if this stems from the measure with which we value people in this society. I feel that many times people value intelligence (albeit a certain type of intelligence) and competence. If a person is deemed to be of below average intelligence or incompetent, then most people have a difficult time valuing them. When elderly peoples' health and cognitive abilities start to decline, I think that many start to lose patience and respect. This also applies to people with disabilities and even women. These people aren't unintelligent or incompetent, but when they are perceived to be so then they are not valued or respected.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was 20, I too felt that I was still a teenager, especially since by appearance I could pass for a 16 or 17 year old. But now that I'm 21, I have to get use to being referred to as an adult, even though when I ask my cousin and the kids that I work with how old they think I am (they always say something in between 8-11) it makes me feel as if I'm so much younger than I really am.
ReplyDeleteI was wondering if your culture causes you to deal with conflict. For example, in America we don't have to use a 'proper greeting' with the elderly. And I was just curious when you come in contact with elderly do you have a sense in the back of your mind that you should greet them in a proper way or do you only apply that to those who are of your culture?
I know in Spain and in any other Spanish speaking country they have to use a different verb tense when speaking with elderly, parents, and professional people. So when I was in Spain I found myself battling in my mind on the proper way to say things because I didn't have to do that here in America.
The statistic for elder abuse also was very shocking to me. I never realized that so many elder people were being abused. It seems like people are over worked and just take out their frustrations on the elderly. In my culture we always take in the elderly and take care of them until they pass away. Its a sign of respect that is lacking in the U.S.
ReplyDeleteGirl! You are so are right, it is INJUSTICE! Everyone gets angry, rightly so, when we hear about child abuse, but nobody likes to think about elder abuse happening because heaven forbid we think about ourselves being old! Only a few states have the law that you must report not only child abuse but ALSO elder abuse. I can't believe that most states don't require reporting elder abuse! In fact, if I remember correctly, if you report elder abuse in a state where there is no law to do so, it's a breach of confidentiality!
ReplyDeletep.s. age matters if you're a wine or whiskey too ; )
-Krystal Hasselmeier