OUTING AGE 2010
AGEISM IN LGBT COMMUNITIES Ageism is an unfortunate fact of American life. Young people are both exploited and held up as the standard bearers of beauty, vibrancy, and innovation—and old people are seen as a drain on societal assets, their rich store of experiences and skills widely ignored. While many LGBT people work to confront oppressive behaviors and practices that harm our community, ageism is an issue that has received relatively little notice on the list of LGBT social-justice concerns. Feminism has had a tremendous impact on the forming of lesbian and bisexual women’s communities in the past 40 years; these are the arenas where ageism has been most fully explored and confronted.69 For instance, Old Lesbians Organizing for Change (OLOC), a national advocacy group of lesbians ages 60-plus, has been a longtime leader in confronting ageism. The OLOC website offers this forceful statement: “Old has become a term of insult and shame. To be ‘old’ means to be ignored and scorned, to be made invisible and expendable. We refute the lie that it is shameful to be an ‘old’ woman. We name ourselves ‘old lesbians’ because we will no longer accommodate ourselves to language that implies in any way that old means inferior. We call ourselves old with pride. In doing so, we challenge the stereotypes directly. Thus, we empower and change ourselves, each other, and the world.”70 Gay and bisexual men appear to have had little connection to this dialogue, with some notable exceptions. Writer Andrew Holleran’s 1996 novel The Beauty of Men and Johnny Symons’s 1997 documentary film Beauty Before Age mine this important territory. Articles in the popular and professional LGBT media have likewise addressed the topic on occasion, but no national organization has emerged to work consistently against ageism among gay and bisexual men.71 Ageism thus continues to have a significant impact on gay and bisexual men’s sense of self-worth and attractiveness over the lifespan.
69
For example, see Copper, B. (1987). Ageism in the Lesbian Community. Freedom, CA: Crossing Press.
70
“Old Lesbians Organizing for Change. About OLOC: Why Old?” Retrieved from www.oloc.org/ about/why_old.php.
71
For examples from the LGBT media, see Linscott, B. (2007, May). Generation Us. Bay Windows; McDaniel, C. (1998, November). Gay Gerontophobia. Windy City Times; Yoakama, J. (1999). Beyond the Wrinkle Room: Challenging Ageism in Gay Male Culture. Dimensions: Newsletter of the Mental Health and Aging Network. In addition, Atlanta therapist John R. Ballew summarizes several of the key issues in the following. Ballew, J. Gay Men and Aging. Retrieved September 16, 2009, from www.thebrc.net/articles/JohnBallew/ EmotionalHealtharticles/ gay-men-and-aging.html.
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