Don’t Age Me, Bro!
There was a video on YouTube that went viral about six years ago. It was based on a plea of a University of FL student who was tazed at a John Kerry forum. The video became known as, “Don’t Taze Me, Bro!”
In that same vein, I’m pleading with society to quit the paralyzing practice of defining people who are older by their age. To do so is confining and limiting; paralyzing in fact when based on negative stereotypes.
People who are 60, 70, or 80 are no more all alike than people who are 20, 30 or 40. Individuality is the key element in the human factor throughout the lifespan. There is no one else exactly like me, despite the fact that they are my age. Remember, there is no age to the human spirit.
So, I beg of you, “Don’t age me, bro!”
- Posted in: Ageism
- Tagged: age discrimination, ageism, paralyze, taze
Refined by Age 
You are exactly correct in this. Defining people of any age by that factor alone has no place in our society. It is no different than defining people by race, gender, religion, etc. I have told my friends and family the same thing. I will define aging for myself, aging will not define me! Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
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Beth, I have a coined a quote to go with this blog, “I will be ‘Refined by Age,’ not defined by age.” Warmly, Kathy
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I recently sat with a young woman waiting for a Pink concert to start and listened to her discuss helping her boss pick out resumes for a potential co-worker. She commented how they got so many resumes from “older” women, 48-50 years old, and that she threw them all in the garbage telling her boss, “There’s no way an older woman can keep up with us.” She said they had previously had a secretary that age and she just never could understand the computer system. I don’t think my friend even realized as she spoke that I fit into that age bracket until another friend gave her the elbow…which is ironic if you think about it. As I am currently in the job hunt arena myself I would add, “Don’t age me, Girlfriend.”
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A great example of what I meant about being paralyzed by negative stereotypes of people who are older. A person who is older can’t even get an interview and their resume ends up in the garbage. That’s ageism in the workplace and goes to show why it’s so hard to prove in a court of law. Much of it happens behind closed doors. Good luck with your job hunt, Debra. Warmly, Kathy
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