September 1996 -- Vol. 3, No.3 (Table of Contents)

Gray Panthers: An Intergenerational organization dedicated to bringing together young, old, women, men, persons of all ethnic, racial, and economic backgrounds for the promotion of social justice.

Ageism is:

• Discrimination based on chronological age.
• The notion that people cease to be persons by virtue of having lived a specific number of years.
• The use of age to define capability and roles.
• A process of systematic stereotyping of and discrimination against people just because they are old.
• To be told "you're too old" is as disheartening as to be told "you're too young;" both statements make you a stereotype when in fact you are an individual.

The Pretenders - These are misguided older folks who believe that age is "all in your head."

The Discriminators - Some of their best friends are old, so how could they be ageist? However, they are quick to point out the realistic limitations of older applicants to jobs in their sphere of influence.

The Exceptionalists - These elders consider themselves the fortunate exceptions to society's negative view of old people. While they think of themselves as vigorous, productive and useful to society, they imagine most of their peers to be in bad shape, useless and boring.

The Colonialists - This type is frequently found among politicians, and is not all rare in the ageism establishment. They may easily be identified because they always preface any word for the aging with a possessive pronoun, such as "OUR senior citizens" or "MY elderly."

The Patronizers - This garden variety is commonly found in senior programs. To them, the old are just delightful when in "their place," and like children, should be catered to and played with.

These are just a few types of ageists. You can most likely add your own list.

We are ALL ageist.

Whether we're young, middle-aged or old, whether we've taken courses in gerontology or not, whether we think we're immune or too well-meaning to be afflicted, we are all ageists.

We're ageist because the society we live in is permeated with ageism. We can no more escape it than we can the chemicals in our food - or sexism or racism for that matter. But at least in the case of the other two social diseases, there's been some progress, and some serious efforts to combat them.

Ageism, by comparison, has been analyzed very little and manifests itself in variations with hardly a challenge.

• Quit complimenting people on how young they look.
• Promote intergenerational job sharing, part-time hours, and no hiring or retirement according to a plan based on chronological age.
• Try not to blame old age for fatigue or disorganization or forgetfulness. In our youth we blame poor planning, lack of sleep, and bad memory.
• Criticize your local news media when a headline or cartoon is offensive.
• When selecting a birthday card, keep your sense of humor. Just learn the difference between laughing WITH rather than laughing AT.
• Fight ageism with two important weapons - knowledge and a willingness to approach every person, regardless of age, as an individual with unique strengths, weaknesses, options, and opportunities.

Special thanks to Dr. Robert Butler, Tish Sommers, and Dr. Deborah V. Gross for their contributions to this brochure.

For additional information contact:
Gray Panthers
2025 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20006
1-800-280-5362 202-466-3132

Note: "Ageism: What is it? How Can We Avoid It?", a new brochure available from national.