Older People Deserve More Respect

As one gets older, one learns that so many younger folk don’t know how to treat elders with respect.  Now I am a senior citizen, I see it in so many ways.  I see in retail situations that younger people often just ignore seniors.  Do they assume they don’t have enough money to purchase?  Or they just don’t know how to relate to seniors?

Once upon a time, we younger folk would open the door for an elder person, smile politely, perhaps say “Hello. So often these days older folk almost get pushed aside, and no courtesy is offered.

Our media seems to ignore the senior cohort.  Rarely are there any positive articles, photos etc.  In fact, there is as always a gender bias towards males in the media.  Perhaps because our significant sports stars are males as are our politicians.

If you are an older woman you are quite marginalised.

Around one in three Australians (35 per cent) aged between 55 and 64 years say they have experienced discrimination because of their age. The most common types of discrimination include being turned down for a job, being ignored or treated rudely and having disparaging jokes made about their age.

(from the Australian Human Rights Commission Website – click here.)

Housing for Senior Women

Statistics in Australia show that women generally live longer than men.  Many women too are financially challenged – some of our very senior women never worked but spent most of their time working for the community or bringing up children, or taking care of family members.

The world has changed so much since early last century.  It sounds weird to mention “last century” but people in their nineties and eighties lived in a world so different than it is now.  They have had to learn so much more, and cope with so many changes in their lives.

Back in the early 1900s, there was no television, no phones, the iceman came (if you lived in the suburbs or in town) with blocks of ice to put in your home ice chest to keep the food cold, and the milkman delivered the milk to homes.  In schools, pens and ink were used, in fact, some folk would have used slates and chalk.   So many amazing women have lived through extraordinary times, but are not treated with the respect they deserve.

Slate and Chalk

Respect?

Do you want to live in a box??  I’ve seen so many of the low-cost properties, and some public housing, which is little more than a box.  Old, nothing modern, a box with no “mod cons.”  It appals me to think that landlords/real estate agents can be so positive about such low-class properties.

So much more needs to be done to create affordable, safe, secure, long term housing for our senior women.  And with appropriate and modern conveniences that will be of help to seniors. And it’s urgent.