By Michael Talibard
I FEEL lucky to be living my life here and now, rather than elsewhere or when. I count among the benefits of this time and place that I have received free education and healthcare, that I have never been required to fight in a war, and that I enjoy boundless access to information through the internet. Not least among the benefits of the here-and-now are those features of our society which I admire, and that certainly includes our tolerance of minorities.
There is still much to be done to counter anti-feminism, but I believe we can feel fairly happy with how far we have come in the last 200 years. Of course it is not perfect, but certainly it is better than it was. The same can be said of racism: there is still progress to be made, but I think we should be proud of how far we have come in the last 200 years. Class prejudice similarly.
Can we say the same of ageism? Sadly, I don’t think so. I often feel that ours is still a very ageist society. Most people don’t even see this as a problem comparable with the others I have mentioned. But surely it is. Historically, much of our sexism, racism and snobbery was unconscious, and now, thank goodness, we are more aware. But in making that transition to visibility, ageism lags far behind. Most of us just don’t see it.
In this series of articles, I shall look at ageism in the workplace, in advertising, in the States, in the family, in the arts, in the press (including the JEP), in the BBC and elsewhere.
For starters, it is interesting to compare ourselves with other cultures around the world and their attitudes to age, so here are some examples from the Far East. But first I must admit that I haven’t visited any of these places: my information comes from Uncle Google and from watching their television. So if you know better, do write in.
Anyway… it would seem that age discrimination is rife in the East. One instance of this is India, where the constitution guarantees its citizens protection from discrimination on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex and place of birth. Age is not included. So discrimination by age is not illegal, leaving only the possibility of a civil-law claim, and these are very uncommon.
In China also, ageism is not illegal, and there is extensive age-based discrimination against older workers in both public and private sectors. This cuts in even earlier than elsewhere – a trend known as the “curse of 35” because the Chinese government’s annual recruitment of civil servants considers only applicants who are under that age. By contrast, Taiwan strives to support older workers, and therefore brought into force in 2020 its Middle-aged and Senior-aged Employment Promotion Act. I suppose it is no surprise to find a contrast between China and Taiwan.
Of course, ageism is a problem not only in the workplace, but in social relations too: and there, oddly, it sometimes works in the contrary direction (in favour of age). Wherever Confucianism has had a strong influence (eg particularly in Japan and Korea) one finds a “reverse ageism” which is actually considered virtuous, even obligatory. Within the family, the pecking order is obvious: Korean parents demand far more obedience than is usual over here; and so to some degree, do older siblings.
Even when forming friendships, they need to find out at an early stage who is older (even by just a year or two) and pay them extra respect. Formal and informal modes of address, and proper ways of naming people, are aligned with age. Just as I would not condone reverse snobbery or racism, so it seems to me that reverse ageism is no better than the usual kind. Surely the ideal is to treat all people equally and fairly regardless.
Moreover, despite customs which favour age, one finds in those same countries real poverty in the oldest generation, in part because their numbers, both absolutely and as a proportion, are growing alarmingly, especially in Japan. In Taiwan they worry that they won’t find enough young recruits for their armed forces (since of course they fear invasion).
In making these international comparisons, we certainly should not be patting ourselves on the back. Old-age under-employment and poverty are universal. As regards respect and decision-making, I see contrasting faults. In the East, the old are often unduly venerated and obeyed, while in our part of the world, au contraire, age discrimination is widely exercised by the middle-aged against the old. Here we tend to infantilise our elders and try to run their lives for them – and we lock them away in care homes.
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Michael Talibard, who is now in his 80s, is a retired teacher and former head of English at Victoria College. He has been part of the campaign group End of Life Choices for over five years, much as that as chairman.
