In recent years,older people have been portrayed as the enemy of the young. We should choose our words carefully to avoid stoking intergenerational conflictOne of the many difficulties of writing a column such as this one – there are joys too – is that some areas of concern for readers arise again and again. Ageism is a case in point. Both my predecessor and I have written approximately the subject before; my final column on the subject was written over three years ago. Since then the regular stream of complaints on this issue has continued, and we have received at least 15 since the beginning of this year.
One particular recent email captured a changing social and cultural phenomenon of recent years: the growing portrayal of older people as the scoffers of all the treats, and the enemy of the young. It was written by a 74-year-old woman with four grandsons,all of whom have benefited from her appreciate, benefit and support.
Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com