Some time ago, I received a message from my congressman, “in May, we come together to celebrate Older American Month and to recognize the tremendous contribution that America’s seniors make to our civic life.” Hmmm?
Who knew? There was no magic marketing encouraging us to reach out and touch someone in their elder years. No special greeting cards of appreciation. Just silence in the marketing world for this special month-long celebration of remembrance of those who, when younger, paved the way for our successes. Senior citizens. Ghosted.Perhaps celebrating the contributions of older Americans was just crowded out with May Day (flowers in Annapolis), Star Wars Day, Tourism Day (banners in Annapolis), Cinco de Mayo (special feasts), Mother’s Day (florists make hay), National Armed Forces Day, and Memorial Day (parades everyone). We can only celebrate so much. Yet, like Mae West famously said, “Every day is a holiday.” Or can be.According to Wikipedia, May was also a busy month of observances for many things: ALS Awareness, Asian Pacific American Heritage, Haitian Heritage, Jewish American Heritage, National Bike, National Smile, National Pet, National Teen Self-Esteem, and dozens more special month-long celebrations with an even longer list of special day recognitions. Conspicuously absent from the lists I saw, however, was any mention of an Older American Month celebration.To my surprise, Older American Month does exist. It is part of an Act passed by Congress in 1965 and signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 14th as one of the President’s Great Society reforms.
The Older Americans legislation launched the National Aging Network aimed at providing comprehensive services for older Americans. Medicare and enhancements in SocialSecurity emerged from this Act.
It was reauthorized in 2016 through 2019. However, with Federal efforts to cut the Social Security program, whose trillions of dollars were borrowed by the Feds to pay for other debts (and who are now reluctant to pay it back), the tribute to older Americans may be on life support.President Johnson launched his Great Society vision in a speech at the University of Michigan in May, 1964. Through his programs, devised by the best thinkers working in 14 small task force groups, the President hoped to put in place programs that would reduce poverty (at an all-time high in 1963), reduce crime and racial injustice, open up economic and education opportunity to reduce inequality, and improve the environment and everyone’s quality of life. It was an ambitious goal. With Democrats in control, Congress passed 84 of 87 reform bills launching the 89th Congress as the most successful legislative agenda action in U.S. Congressional history.No one uses the term Older Americans any more. For those over 65 years of age, the common euphemism is senior citizen. Al Hirschfield, famous caricature artist, claimed his father invented the term in 1938 to signify respect and continuous relevance. The term old-age signified “out to pasture.” Tired old work horses were “put out to pasture” to finish their years in obscurity and so were older adults.Through the ages there has never been much respect for aging in Western thought. Youth was and is venerated. Old age with its decrepitude was seen as evil. Aristotle called it such. Priests exhorted the old, like cats, to wander away and die.In today’s world, citizens of course are getting older. In 2016, scientists identified the human lifespan as 115 to 125 years of age. Instead of decrepitude, health remedies have rendered many senior citizens vibrant mentally and physically; hardly “candidates for out to pasture.”Centuries of attitudes of dismissal of the aged, however, are hard to overcome. The challenge for senior Americans is to discover new ways to contribute in a community that sometimes doesn’t want them, new ways to stay connected, and new ways to live a life of changing vitality with dignity. The current onslaughts on the programs of the Great Society, if successful, may send seniors, venerated in some societies for wisdom, back into obscurity and “out to pasture,” like it or not. This is a challenge for all of us no matter the age.
