The Lengthening List of Oppressions Age Relations and the Feminist Study of Inequality (original) (raw)
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Introduction: A socialist-feminist approach to aging
Journal of Aging Studies, 1993
Despite the inroads made in understanding and ameliorating many problem areas for the elderly, present gerontological knowledge has not been able to address the variety of problems and differences in the quality of life emerging among diverse categories of elderly. Indeed, because of the overall progress that has been made we can now see that our efforts have fallen short by not considering differences along gender, racial/ ethnic, and class lines. For example, in the last two decades, poverty among the elderly has declined somewhat. However, closer examination by gender and race/ethnicity reveals significant differences in poverty rates. Only 8% of all men are poor; in contrast, 15% of old women are poor, comprising almost three-fourths (71%) of the elderly poor, yet making up only 59% of the aged population . While those most likely to be poor are those who live alone, the risk of poverty is not simply a matter of living arrangements, as demonstrated by the fact that more widows than widowers are poor (Davis, . Further, the relationship of gender and poverty is not expected to lessen in the near future: "[Tlhe proportion of elderly couples and elderly men living alone who are poor or near-poor is expected to virtually disappear. Consequently, by 2020 poverty among the elderly will be almost exclusively a problem among elderly women" (Davis, Grant, and Rowland 1990, p. 45).
Feminist gerontology and old men
The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences, 2004
This article outlines feminist gerontology and shows how its focus on power relations lends insight into the lives of those people disadvantaged by them as well as the people privileged by social inequalities. To illustrate the latter, I discuss how feminist gerontology might examine old men, using the topic of health as an example. For instance, arrangements that maintain privilege in young adulthood and middle age can lead to poor health in old age. These practices of masculinity include physical risk in competition with other men, neglect of social networks and medical care, and avoidance of any self-report of emotional strain. However, with its focus on diversity, feminist gerontology also emphasizes that experiences of manhood, aging, and health vary by one's location in a network of inequalities.
What is new with old? What old age teaches us about inequality and stratification
Aging is remarkably unequal. Who survives to grow old in America and the circumstances they face once there reflect durable racial, socioeconomic, and gender inequalities that structure our lives from birth. Yet within the field of social stratification and mainstream sociology proper, examinations of the rapidly growing population of older Americans are often relegated to a " gerontological " periphery. This essay posits that the failure to place aging as a core concern in stratification and inequality is a missed opportunity. We argue for the importance of reintegrating studies on the stratifica-tion of aging and explain why such a move is necessary. Specifically, we posit that (a) examining the aging population is necessary for understanding American inequality because aging is an outcome that is ubiquitous yet highly stratified; (b) aging and being seen as " old " in a youthâfocused society are stratifying processes in their own right; and (c) later life provides for analytical comparisons that are illustrative of how key mechanisms of inequality structure and stratify. After examining insights provided by a new wave of research on the aging U.S. population, we revisit the implications for understanding inequality and stratification in a graying and unequal America.
"Ageism and Feminism: From 'Et Cetera' to Center
NWSA Journal, 2006
Although women's studies scholars and activists do not deny the reality of ageism, they have relegated it to secondary status, neglecting to theorize age relations or place old age at the center of analysis. After explaining what we mean by age relations and their intersections with other inequalities, we discuss the ways in which old people are oppressed, and why age relations represent a political location that needs to be addressed in its own right. We then demonstrate ways in which feminist theories and activism might change if the focus shifted to old people.
The construction of the older worker: privilege, paradox and policy
Discourse & Communication, 2007
A B ST R A C T Our study of a public inquiry shows how particular constructions of the older worker -as male and lacking in self-esteem -were privileged as a result of discursive manoeuvres that established comparative disadvantage among different identities. Paradoxically, traditional gender stereotypes were subverted to construct female willingness to accept low status, low paid jobs as a reason why they did not need help in the form of policy initiatives; while men's intransigence meant they deserved greater support. A second paradox concerned the construction of the older worker as lacking self-esteem: it led to self-esteem based solutions that were the responsibility of the individual to remedy but, precisely because older male workers lacked self-esteem, they were unable to help themselves and needed the help of employment and welfare agencies. Thus we can see the link between particular identity constructions, discourse and the reproduction of particular institutional structures.
Journal of Aging, Humanities, and the Arts, 2008
According to recent literature on privilege and oppression, system-wide structures of class, race, and gender inequality are sustained at both the macro-and microlevel of society simultaneously. As an analysis of the microlevel process of how privilege might be sustained, using one case study from archives of the Luella Hannan Memorial Foundation, this article documents how the process of receiving aid might seemingly take privilege away from older, formally privileged women, and how individual aid recipients might resist this lack of power or privilege. Overall, this case highlights the dynamic nature of an individual's privilege, the process by which privilege is pursued and sustained at the microlevel, and the different types of privilege (e.g., economic or social, institutionally sanctioned or personal, macro or micro) that an individual might pursue in varying circumstances.
Journal of Aging Studies, 2008
As a feminist sociologist and gerontologist, I am aware that life and work intersect, with one arena providing fodder, challenge, or impetus for reflection upon the other. I explore those links consciously in this essay, finding some of the earlier tensions that have marked my intellectual and personal life resolved while others maintain their importance. In particular, I have experienced greater acceptance of feminist work and feel a part of a community of scholars; at the same time, I continue to struggle with the deeper levels of ageism in society, both within the disciplines in which I work and within myself.
Global Gender Inequality, Older Women, and the Call for Change in the United States
Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology
Gender inequality that persists through much of their lives, from birth through adulthood, impacts women and their quality of life in their later years. With some variation this holds true in every nation in the global community. In older adults, the most apparent indication of gender inequality-and a linchpin-is the disproportionate impoverishment of older women compared to older men. We take stock of global policy directions toward equality for girls and women, focusing specifically on derived avenues for furthering and protecting the economic well-being of older women in the United States, cognizant that these directions can rebound with implications for nations worldwide.