Kate's Blog on Health & Spirituality

Anna Bowness Park, a spiritual thinker, syndicated writer and colleague, shares her insight on the discrimination of ageism in Canada. Please join me in reading this enlightening article - as we too have this same type of tolerated discrimination in the U.S. today. Let’s see what Anna has to report on this growing social problem and explore a more spiritual remedy that is always available.

Everyone has the right to know that they have something to contribute

The recent movie, “The Second Best Marigold Hotel,” stars a cast of my favourite older British actors playing the roles of seniors living in India. To me, like the first movie about the Marigold Hotel, this one is not so much about age as it is about life. Whether it is the cranky but wise Muriel (played by Maggie Smith), hilariously dressing down an American waiter on the proper way to serve tea, or Sonny, the young hotel manager (Dev Patel), whose insecurity about his upcoming nuptials threatens to derail the wedding, it’s life in all its tender, poignant and funny moments that is examined, against a backdrop of the color and vibrancy of India.

It’s a shame, though, that the movie is marketed to the silver tsunami crowd, complete with some subtle jokes on ageing. It could so easily have been a great opportunity to more vigorously confront the problem of ageism in our society, as well as celebrate the innate energy, capabilities and wisdom of people of all ages.

Ageism is the most tolerated form of discrimination in Canada. A poll two years ago found that eight out of ten Canadians believe that seniors aged 75 or older are less important and more ignored than younger generations. Additionally, six out of ten seniors felt they had been treated unfairly because of their age. The report concluded that “ageism is not an old person’s problem, it is a societal problem.”

Please click here to read the entire article

Tags: ageing, Ageism, discrimination, Ellen Langer, prejudice

Kate is interested in blogging about the impact of prayer and spirituality on our health from her experience as a Christian Science practitioner. She is the media, legislative and public contact for Christian Science in the state of Maryland. Contact Kate on Twitter: @CscomMaryland, on Facebook: Kate Johnson CS, or email: maryland@compub.org.