Today is Ageism Awareness Day and at the African Center for Community Development, we recognize the impact of ageism on our older adults, and are inspired to continue promoting the well-being of older adults in our communities.

Aging is a fulfillment of humanity that we all must experience, whether or not we reach the end. The end, in this sense, refers to the age of retirement. For many, retirement is when benefits become available to be claimed. While that is true, we must also view retirement as a transitional phase from early to late adulthood, which involves considerable change. We may not know life as we once did, but that doesn’t mean we have lost our sense of self, instead our activities have shifted.

As with every phase of life, aging comes with its opportunities and challenges. One of the opportunities thereby is continued personal growth. As life doesn’t end with aging, so do our rights. As aptly stated by the American Society on Aging: the right to health, to decent work, to rest and leisure, and to social protection like pensions and benefits does not end in later life. We must continue to live healthily and happily and to participate in workforce development, civic engagement, technological innovation, policy and infrastructure development, intergenerational connections, and anything else we choose to engage in.

A prevalent challenge of aging is ageism, which is discrimination based on a person’s age. Although ageism affects various generations, it is essential to acknowledge that older adults (50 years and above) particularly encounter ageism everyday, intensifying as age increases (read more here). The prevalence of stereotypes regarding frailty and limitations can cause older adults to self-isolate. In turn, isolation can heighten the risk of depression, anxiety, loneliness, and exclusion from social participation. (Allen et. al, 2022).