Let's say "no" to ageism!

The III National Conference on Aging "Society for All Ages" will start in Moscow on October 8. Within its framework, a session on ageism is planned, at which domestic and foreign experts will consider this problem and try to give their recommendations on overcoming the negative social phenomenon. Gerontologist and public figure Eduard Karyukhin told RIA Novosti about age discrimination, active longevity and how the perception of old age in Russia is changing.

Photo provided by the Timchenko Foundation

– Eduard Valentinovich, please tell us about ageism, what is this phenomenon, its history?..

– The most common definition is the manifestation of age discrimination, that is, infringement of human rights related to his age. The term was proposed by the American gerontologist Robert Butler in 1969. The American School of Sociology of Age is generally quite old: back in the XIX century, social constructions related to the influence of the state and society on age strata were studied there, and on the contrary, how age groups, age population, in turn, affect society and the state. Within the framework of this dynamic interaction, ageism is considered as a phenomenon associated with a rather ancient human reaction to age-related parameters of a person's personal growth.

Neanderthals got rid of old people with a blow of a club, because they were an obstacle to the mobility of tribes in search of food. These methods of negative attitude towards old people, reducing them to an extreme degree of existence, have been preserved to this day: the cudgel has been replaced by more refined methods of influence that lead to the social isolation of the elderly. And it is clear that where the level of public consciousness is lower, the forms of ageism are more vivid, more manifestant.

– When do people begin to feel discrimination?

– In 30-35 years. Especially in the labor market. It's no secret that for a 35-40-year-old woman, there are already hidden or obvious barriers hinting at sharing a workplace. Ageism is a fairly clear parameter reflecting a specific moment of the state of public consciousness in relation to age. Critical gerontology, which studies the parameters of the impact of the state on the population of old people and their impact on the state and society, says that ageism is an artificial social structure that is created by the ruling elites in one period or another of the development of the state and society to solve certain tasks. For example, in the 1990s, given the state of the economy, political and social spheres, we could not look better and create something that did not yet correspond to the mass consciousness. In the early 2000s, we wrote a number of literature reviews based on UN documents on the rights of older people (poverty, age discrimination, labor age discrimination). But the subject was ignored, was out of the public field.

Mass consciousness in the absence of an appropriate information and educational field tends to neglect age. And the paradox is that those who neglect it, in 20-30 years they will also be neglected. These are people whose consciousness is not immersed in the topic of social activity in general, closed in themselves, not going beyond their limits. "Now I'm going to college, I'm getting married, I'm going to earn money for a dacha, I'm going to buy a car, what old age are you guys?! This is happening to someone, not to me." And then – the car is broken, the money is gone, the wife is gone, the diseases have gone… This is the fate of our society in these conditions.

But today a colossal challenge has been given. Paradigms are changing, the attitude of the state in the socio-political, socio-economic spheres is changing, the attitude towards old people is changing. A strategy of actions in the interests of elderly citizens is being developed. This is the first indicator of the breakdown of the old paradigm. There is also a breakthrough in the media on the topics of older people, the concept of active aging, examples of teaching older people to work on a computer, social tourism… On this wave, the status of older people began to increase, and, as a result, the idea is fixed in the public consciousness: yes, they study, they achieve, they are active, they travel, they play sports. So, respect is growing.

This is all happening dynamically. This was the case in the USA and Western Europe at one time, where social consciousness regarding the dignity of the elderly is higher. But we are also beginning to "liberalize the age" – its liberation – in the economy, in the labor markets, in the fields of leisure, culture, and sports. A colossal resource of culture, knowledge, and skills is hidden in the elderly. And, of course, it was extremely illogical to restrain him.

– What to do, for example, to an employee to whom no one directly says, they say, sorry, you are too old for us, we are cutting you, but the person understands that there is age discrimination.

– The very first step is to turn to lawyers for advice. There are trade union organizations that often play a positive role in terms of upholding rights. This is the same tool. There are lawyers, jurists, consultants from public organizations, law offices and legal consulting organizations where you can clarify issues with a professional lawyer: the contract is going to be interrupted or replaced, I risk losing my job, or they sent a letter of dismissal, and the contract ends in six months… It is necessary to receive qualified advice. This is a way similar to how a person, having fallen ill, turns to a doctor.

It happens that a person immediately goes to court when there is clear evidence that they are being discriminated against. According to labor law lawyers, the courts do not work fully adequately yet, decisions are not always made from the point of view of discrimination diagnosis. Therefore, it is better to consult a professional first, weigh pro et contra, and prepare.

– Many elderly people do not even know these possibilities or are afraid…

– Yes, they ignore consultations. On this basis, there are stress, resentment, misunderstanding. And a person closes himself more, isolates himself, withdraws into himself. In addition, not all of them walk, not all can hear or see well, they cannot leave the house… Such people, cut off by their functional properties, often do not have adequate information in the field of law at all. Therefore, NGOs need to actively create legal awareness-raising projects. Seminars, programs, and training are very relevant for the elderly.

I observe a large number of lawyers in the regions. In Kamensk-Uralsky, elderly people and veterans of armed conflicts are consulted, specialists are involved both for a fee and free of charge. The same is true in Rubtsovsk: lawyers, lawyers are engaged in defending medical rights in relation to the elderly, discuss problems with them, and forms of such public counseling for those in need are born. In small towns and rural settlements, this function should be filled to some extent by a social worker. He brings food to the house, brings new provisions. Such a social worker is also a living thread, connects the old man with the world.

The problem is that not all those in need are covered. 100% of the elderly are conditionally in the sphere of the CSO. Of these, 40-60% can be covered by services. According to the chief gerontologist of Moscow, Professor Olga Tkacheva, in Russia, 20% of the elderly are at high risk, vulnerable. This means every fifth! For me, this figure was a small surprise, because according to classical literature, according to our sources, 7-10% were previously indicated in the risk group. This is a large group that dynamically fluctuates between life and death, given the lack of help, the lack of NGOs, the lack of traditions of volunteering, including among the elderly themselves.

– This form is just beginning to emerge in our country.

– ...And in Europe, pensioners who leave the labor markets make up the backbone of the volunteer movement among the elderly. They do a lot of useful work with their peers: they come to the house, to hospitals, serve cafes for the elderly, help each other, organize cultural and leisure things. Our task is to develop active aging so that the elderly themselves fill the needs, services that are missing from the state, NGOs.

Let's take an old house in the center of Moscow. I am sure that 10-15% of its residents are old people lying down, no one helps them. We just don't have a tradition of help and community yet. And all you need to do is to offer to get together and say: Maria Ivanovna is lying there, Pyotr Petrovich is alone there, you will carry the pies, I will carry the mittens, and he will call and inquire about the condition. Social life will boil up, not passing by the elderly, but coming to them, involving them in the life of society. We will pull them out of social isolation, then there will be fewer tragedies, pessimism, more optimism, activity, and young people will reach out.

Overcoming ageism in practical terms is the activity of society, and for it to arise, of course, a mental change is needed. In the USSR, these approaches were not, although, of course, respect for old age was declared much more powerful than today.

– Respect for elders should be instilled from childhood in order to avoid discrimination against a person later. And how to do it?

– In this regard, gerontology speaks of the need to change the image of old age in society. The parameters of this shift are set by the state. Here teenagers see poor grandmothers collecting bottles, hear how their parents sometimes speak contemptuously about their parents, do not help them, note that grandpa is necessarily missing something, and he also drinks, pay attention to the fact that mom has a new beautiful coat, and grandma has an old shiny one, shoes are worn out… What is the educational value of such pictures for children?

We are all used to the fact that grandma has to live in poverty. It turns out that when the younger generation sees such an image of the elderly, due to their complex relations with the state and society, then a negative stereotype is laid in relation to old age. As soon as – gradually, not quickly – the image will change towards active, working, well-dressed, traveling, athletic, educated, helping children and grandchildren, living autonomously, thriving, poor grandmothers will disappear on the streets, the generation of old people will live respectably, and the attitude towards the elderly will change.

– This is a long-term story, work on changing consciousness…

– Consciousness also changes under the influence of social structures of the state. There will now be a positive construction in relation to old age, gerontology will develop, the material level will increase, and the attitude towards the elderly will change. It's inevitable. It happened everywhere. But while we are at such a moment of social development, when the old is in the new, the new is in the old… Everything is contradictory. The direction is very fragile, changing rapidly. Besides aging, other challenges affect us, such as economic, political, global, and so on.

But the will has finally appeared! The turn in this direction was obvious. Social tourism is developing rapidly. In the same Kamensk-Uralsky: the TSO gives a free bus, NGOs – their wards, and they go to the malachite caves, to the place of the death of the royal family… Or trips to Zarinsk for country seminars with swimming, sports classes and other things. Nikolay Aksenov, the head of the Zarinsky Incentive, is a very wise guy, he is about 30 years old. On the basis of the former summer camp of the orphanage, he has developed a playground for the elderly, and brings groups of children from orphanages to them. They communicate, sit around the campfire, help each other. And what's interesting: older people quickly perceive these rules of the game, they have so much fun together, as if they've been in this all their lives. Such an alloy appears wonderful, you just marvel!

– How is the public initiative implemented in business structures, social entrepreneurship?

– Charity and assistance to social categories are becoming a fashionable movement in a good way. It is clear that crisis times are not the best period for business investments in such a seemingly losing sphere as social. Especially gerontology. But grant-based corporate things are starting to work, and people on the ground are implementing projects better and better, more pointwise, targeted.

In the same Kamensk-Uralsky, not so long ago, we received the first small grant from an aluminum plant for electronic chess equipment for blind elderly people. We bought it in Moscow, brought it, arranged a room. Now blind elderly people play, organize tournaments. Then they took another grant – from metallurgists. We have made a patronage program for elderly activists: they come to the infirm disabled, bring them food, clean, communicate. In Tambov, the NGO undertook to administer six rural departments of care for the elderly. The guys try to work informally, are open to partnership. The Old Age in Joy Foundation brought them a whole van of things, we gave them something. They receive state subsidies, invest in gerontological care.

These injections of new knowledge are from Moscow NGOs, which are associated with world achievements in the field. The experience is colossal, you can't shut yourself off from it. This is all coming to the regions more actively. And I am glad that social entrepreneurship, one of the key social innovations on which the state relies, is being popularized and gaining momentum. True, NGO employees are afraid that there will be competition, but here it is necessary to think, to spin.

It's up to initiative people, such people are changing lives now. As soon as the public initiative begins to beat, a small penny appears – everything changes quickly. These elements of the new, of course, will develop. And within the framework of these new forms, the harmful, dark attitude towards the elderly will gradually change, ageism will go away. Although human nature is conservative, and there may be relapses, but these will be relapses, not mass practice.

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28.09.2015