Age and Disability in U.S.

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Age and Disability in U.S. Society

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Age and Disability in U.S. Society

Today, American society is witnessing a disturbing trend of prejudicial and

discriminatory treatment towards its aging and disabled citizens. On one hand, elderly
individuals are experiencing discrimination in the workplace as many are forced into retirement
and replaced by younger, cheaper employees. On the other, people with disabilities are
consistently treated like victims in modern culture, often times considered helpless and
unemployable in the work force. The two groups share similar qualities but differ in certain key
areas. To better understand the individual experiences of both, we must dissect their group
compositions and collective standings in todays society.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 13.7 percent of Americans are currently over the age
of 65 ("U.S. Census Bureau", 2012). Of those approximately 43 million individuals, 84 percent
have reportedly experienced ageism, a term used to describe the prejudice and discrimination
against older adults (Schaefer, 2012, p. 396, para. 4). These negative experiences range from
hurtful insults and disrespectful comments, to outright discrimination in the workplace. Schaefer
(2012) posits that ageism is a result of the fear and anxiety experienced by the young and
middle-aged, with regards to growing older. This fear, when combined with an individual
business desire to cut costs, helps to build the framework for one form of institutional
discrimination, which describes a denial of opportunities and equal rights to individuals or
groups, resulting from the normal operations of a society (Schaefer, 2012, p. 400, para. 1). This
inequity creates a widespread societal ripple effect, encompassing hiring discrimination and bias
in promotions and training in the American workplace.
People with disabilities face many challenges similar to those of the elderly in modern
society. A disability is defined as a reduced ability to perform tasks one would normally do at a

Age and Disability in U.S. Society

given stage in life (Schaefer, 2012, p. 398, para. 4). According to Schaefer (2012), The Census
Bureau reported that an estimated 36 million Americans were living with some type of disability
in 2011, which equates to approximately 10% of the national population. Over time, society has
managed to attach a stigma to individual members of this minority group, seeing them only for
their ailments instead of their unique personalities. As with senior citizens, the disabled
consistently suffer the effects of institutional discrimination, a fact reflected by the groups twothirds unemployment rate among working age adults (Schaefer, 2012). The media perpetuates
this inequity by portraying disabled individuals as helpless and childlike, unable to contribute to
society in any kind of meaningful way (Schaefer, 2012). At the other end of the spectrum,
disabled fictional characters like Captain Hook and Freddy Krueger are depicted as villains being
punished for their cruel deeds, made to suffer with deformities for the rest of their lives as a
result of their evil ways. Even this phenomenon is mirrored by the discrimination of senior
citizens, since that group is made to seem as though all of its members are ready for a life of
retirement and visits with the grandchildren, a false generalization that is as misleading and
offensive as the unrealistic portrayal of disabled individuals.
Although the two groups share certain similar obstacles and challenges, there is one key
difference that separates the elderly from every other subordinate group each and every one of
us, provided we live long enough, will become a senior citizen at some point in our lives. This
inarguable fact is exactly what makes senior discrimination so alarming, since society must be in
a state of deeply rooted denial to continually stereotype and judge members of a group that we
will all eventually belong to. According to Schaefer (2012), the elderly population in the U.S. is
growing rapidly, projected to increase from 13 to 21 percent of Americans by 2050. As we
collectively become more health conscious, life expectancy is extended and the mortality rate

Age and Disability in U.S. Society

decreases, enabling many of us to live past the age of 65 and to become part of the exact same
group that weve ridiculed and discriminated against in our younger years.
Economics, income, and unemployment are major issues for both subordinate groups, all
three aspects forming an intricate picture of their individual financial statuses. For the elderly,
there is no single, clear-cut economic profile to be found. Instead we discover a mixed bag of
financial positions for members of this group, each one dependent upon a persons former career,
lifestyle, and current expenses. Fortunately, according to Schaefer (2012), the overall poverty
rate among seniors is gradually declining every year. The author states The perception of
elderly and poor as practically synonymous has changed in recent years to a view that the
noninstitutionalized elderly are economically better off than the population as a whole
(Schaefer, 2012, p. 396, para. 5). Those elderly individuals who do live below the poverty line
are usually part of yet another subordinate group, such as a racial or ethnic minority, or perhaps a
female head of the household who struggles to pay her bills with a fixed income each month.
Although the statistics illustrate an overall decline in the number of impoverished elderly
individuals, thousands of senior citizens remain mired in bills and health care costs that they
cannot afford. This issue is far from being completely resolved, but the group must seek progress
rather than perfection if they want to see the tangible results of their efforts.
Americans with disabilities are far more deeply affected by poverty and unemployment, as
nearly 28 per cent of disabled adults were in poverty in 2010, according to the Census Bureau
(Heasley, 2011, para. 2). This means that nearly one-third of disabled individuals were earning
less than $11,139 per year, clearly an insufficient amount of money to survive on in todays
economy. Furthermore, Heasley (2011) explains that significant financial disparities were
discovered by the census, based upon disability status. Heasley (2011) states:

Age and Disability in U.S. Society

Median earnings for men with disabilities were about $41,500, compared to
roughly $48,000 for those without. Women with disabilities had a median income
of just under $32,000, while their typically developing peers earned more than
$37,000 (paras. 5-6).

This economic imbalance is a glaring sign of discrimination in the workplace, which disability
advocacy groups are working tirelessly to reconcile in the near future.

Looking back, we find that people with physical and mental disabilities have been
socially disadvantaged as a group, largely as a result of societys preconceived notions and
stereotypical assumptions about the disabled. The most important thing to remember is that every
society has had members who were disabled, but they were rarely (if ever) treated as equals
(Schaefer, 2012). Recently, there has been a concerted effort by disability advocacy groups to
ensure equal rights for disabled citizens, a movement which began in California in the early
1960s, led by a man named Ed Roberts. Roberts and several of his disabled peers wanted to
attend the University of California at Berkeley, though the school was initially disinclined to
admit them. Eventually, the university was persuaded to accept the disabled students and
promised to reserve space in the schools infirmary as makeshift housing for handicapped
students (Schaefer, 2012). Consequently, Roberts and his group established the Berkeley Center
for Independent Living a short time later, which became an example for hundreds of residential
facilities in the years that followed (Schaefer, 2012).

Over the next three decades, a strong social movement for disability rights was born in
America, made up of several individual organizations focused on the same goal. Many of these
groups fought for and achieved the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in

Age and Disability in U.S. Society

1990, often considered the most sweeping antidiscrimination legislation since the 1964 Civil
Rights Act (Schaefer, 2012, p. 401, para. 2). The ADA officially went into effect in 1992,
which:
Prohibits bias in employment, transportation, public accommodations, and
telecommunication against people with disabilities. Businesses with more than 15
employees cannot refuse to hire a qualified applicant with a disability; these
companies are expected to make a reasonable accommodation to permit such a
worker to do the job. Commercial establishments such as office buildings, hotels,
theaters, supermarkets, and dry cleaners are barred from denying service to people
with disabilities (Schaefer, 2012, p. 401, para. 2).

The passage of the ADA was a monumental feat for disability advocacy groups, a milestone
which effectively changed the future for disabled people in America.
In 1968, Congress passed the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, specifically to
protect workers 40 years of age or older from being fired because of their age and replaced with
younger workers who presumably would receive lower salaries (Schaefer, 2012, p. 396, para.
2). The Supreme Court fortified the law against age discrimination in 1996, ruling unanimously
that such lawsuits can be successful even if an older worker is replaced by someone older than
40. Consequently, if a firm unfairly fires a 65 year-old employee to make way for a 45-year-old,
this still can constitute age discrimination (Schaefer, 2012, p. 396, para. 2). Although age
discrimination still exists in a more subtle form today, the passage of these laws struck a major
blow against age-related bias and stereotypes in American society, the effects of which are felt to
this day.

Age and Disability in U.S. Society

Obviously, prejudice and discrimination are not limited to racial and ethnic groups, but
extend to quietly attack the elderly and disabled individuals in 21st century American society.
Institutional discrimination is the major culprit in both scenarios, wherein the flawed operation of
our nation prevents these two minority groups from seizing opportunities and denies them the
equal rights that they most certainly deserve. The elderly are observed as weak and infirm, often
fired or laid off from jobs and replaced with younger, cheaper workers who lack the experience
of their predecessors. People with disabilities face similar challenges in our society; its members
constantly looked upon as useless and pitiful rather than strong and productive. Federal
legislation has helped to change these oppressive practices, but both groups still face a long road
ahead. Although they may be defined as minorities, these individuals have forged strength in
numbers as they band together to fight discrimination at every turn. This cohesive bond may be
the key to ending prejudice against both elderly and disabled Americans in the not-so-distant
future.

References

Age and Disability in U.S. Society

Heasley, S. (2011, September 14). More than 1 In 4 with disabilities living In poverty. Disability
Scoop. Retrieved from http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2011/09/14/more-1-in-4-poverty/13952/

Schaefer, R. T. (2012). Racial and ethnic groups (13th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice
Hall.

U.S. Census Bureau. (2012). Retrieved from http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/00000.html