When activists speak about marginalized communities, their discussions primarily circulate around race, socioeconomics and gender; age is rarely considered a topic of priority. Yet, discrimination based upon someone’s age is a prevalent social and systemic issue; the older population of the United States is vulnerable to high rates of elder abuse, workplace discrimination and general degradation.
Discrimination stems from stereotypes about a group of people. The fashionable grandmas of Instagram work to challenge prejudices about the older populations online, while many advocacy groups and retirement centers work day to day to ensure elders are receiving the care they need. I wanted to challenge my own biases by volunteering this summer at the Weinberg Center for Balanced Living, a community for adults over 60.
As part of a pre-orientation program, I volunteered at this center with a group of Columbia/Barnard students who shared the same preconceived notions as me towards the older population. Little did we know what we were in for when we decided to participate in one of the senior jazz classes. We were greeted by 30 Baby Boomers decked out in workout clothes, ready to break a sweat. One 70-year-old man next to me whispered to me that I “shouldn’t feel bad if I can’t keep up.” I soon understood what he meant when the music started playing and the seniors broke out into fast-paced, coordinated dance: ball change, turn, jazz square, turn, jump, turn—to say the least, I was outdanced by people five times my age.
After embarrassing myself in the dance class, I volunteered in the arts and crafts room. This elderly woman was making 3D animals out of beads and strings and offered to teach us how to make our own. No joke, it took us Columbia students over two hours to create a ball of beads while these older women were making bead tigers in under 20 minutes.
Our final task was to help serve lunch; we washed the silverware, set the tables and served the food. The Weinberg Center serves breakfast and lunch for free, Monday through Friday, for the retirees. There is a great social aspect to these meal times where the seniors bond over playfully pleading for who gets to be served first. The food was so delicious that even the volunteers decided to eat the center meals instead of the lunches we packed. It was refreshing to know that if I decide to live in New York as a senior citizen, there will be government-funded centers that would provide me with free, flavorful food.
I had two takeaways from this experience at the Weinberg Center. The first is to never underestimate someone based on their age. These senior citizens had more energy and talent than we anticipated; they defied the stereotype that the elderly only like low-energy activities like napping and reading the news. Instead, these seniors at the Weinberg Center dance competitive Zumba, create beautiful arts and crafts, teach immigrants English and take theater classes.
I also learned that getting older isn’t as bad as I feared. Time goes by fast and I don’t want to take my youth for granted. The thought that one day I might not be able to take care of myself or will become handicapped is an aspect of the aging process I would like to stall as much as possible. Seeing the liveliness and independence of the seniors at Weinberg brought me hope that there will be a supportive community awaiting me when I reach my older years.