{"id":1457,"date":"2017-05-19T07:50:00","date_gmt":"2017-05-19T11:50:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.silvercentury.org\/2017\/09\/what-does-old-look-like-to-millennials-and-to-aarp\/"},"modified":"2018-03-30T08:50:14","modified_gmt":"2018-03-30T12:50:14","slug":"what-does-old-look-like-to-millennials-and-to-aarp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/78.142.243.82\/~silvercentury\/2017\/05\/what-does-old-look-like-to-millennials-and-to-aarp\/","title":{"rendered":"What Does \u2018Old\u2019 Look Like to Millennials\u2014and to AARP?"},"content":{"rendered":"

AARP\u2019s #DisruptAging site<\/a> has some commendable goals: to \u201chold a mirror up to the ageist beliefs around us,\u201d and \u201cchange the stories we tell ourselves about aging.\u201d In other words, as they put it, to \u201cdisrupt aging\u201d\u2014which also just happens to be the title of AARP CEO Jo Ann Jenkins\u2019 new book. The site has featured me as an \u201cage disruptor<\/a>,\u201d which I appreciate. It\u2019s produced a few videos, the most recent of which has gotten a lot of traction.<\/p>\n

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Called \u201cMillennials Show Us What \u2018Old\u2019 Looks Like<\/a>,\u201d the video asks a sampling of millennials their ages (19-33), what age they consider to be old (40s-50s), and how an old person would cross the street or do a push-up or a jumping jack (haltingly). Then each is introduced to an older person (55-75) and the pair is instructed to \u201cteach each other something you\u2019re good at.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bringing people from different generations face-to-face is a great<\/em> idea. It instantly dismantles stereotypes and creates a human connection. \u201cWatch what happens when folks let go of their outdated beliefs and embrace the idea that aging is not about decline\u2014it\u2019s about growth,\u201d the caption chirps. The pairs dance. They do yoga. They box. They smile and hug. The youngers now define \u201cold\u201d as 80 or 90, or 100.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the problem? Every exchange involves athletic ability. What about olders who can\u2019t kickbox or tango? What about those of us who excel at bridge or typing (ahem)? What about the irrefutable fact that aging involves physical decline? The olders in the video made the cut because they can move like younger people. It\u2019s in synch with the website\u2019s problematic promise to deliver \u201clively conversation about age-defying people\u201d but it is a narrow and punishing metric because it suggests that the way to have value in old age is to \u201cact young.\u201d The video is steeped in age denial, as are the comments of the older participants, who say things like \u201cage doesn\u2019t matter\u201d and \u201cWhen people start stopping, that\u2019s when they start getting old.\u201d That might be when they start getting sick<\/em>, and I hope the guy who says it is able to stay active, but he\u2019s no younger<\/em> than any other 75-year-old.<\/p>\n

Another problem with the video? Instead of fundamentally challenging ageist stereotypes, it simply postpones them. Frailty and immobility lie ahead, just farther down the road. This scenario idealizes the \u201cyoung old,\u201d the market AARP has always aimed at, and does a grave disservice to all the 80-, 90- and 100-year-olds who continue to get around, contribute to their communities and show younger people a thing or two.<\/p>\n

Another video on the site, \u201cNo Donuts for You!,<\/a>\u201d is brilliant. \u201cEvery day age discrimination happens behind closed doors. We wanted to see what it would look like if we brought it out into the open,\u201d says the caption. They set up a food truck where an impressively straight-faced actress disguised as an employee\u2014she deserves an Oscar\u2014refuses to serve anyone over 40. It\u2019s a provocative, hilarious and bitingly effective social experiment, and I hope AARP thinks up more of them.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

AARP\u2019s #DisruptAging site has some commendable goals: to \u201chold a mirror up to the ageist beliefs around us,\u201d and \u201cchange the stories we tell ourselves about aging.\u201d In other words, as they put it, to \u201cdisrupt aging\u201d\u2014which also just happens to…<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more What Does \u2018Old\u2019 Look Like to Millennials\u2014and to AARP?<\/span> ›<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

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