演講者：Ashton?Applewhite?·?Author, activist
It's not the passage of time that makes it so hard to get older. It's ageism, a prejudice that pits us against our future selves -- and each other. Ashton Applewhite urges us to dismantle the dread and mobilize against the last socially acceptable prejudice. "Aging is not a problem to be fixed or a disease to be cured," she says. "It is a natural, powerful, lifelong process that unites us all."
This talk was presented at an official TED conference, and was featured by our editors on the home page.
00:12
What's one thing that every person in this room is going to become??Older.?And most of us are scared stiff at the prospect.?How does that word make you feel??I used to feel the same way.?What was I most worried about??Ending up drooling in some grim institutional hallway.?And then I learned that only four percent of older Americans?are living in nursing homes,?and the percentage is dropping.What else was I worried about??Dementia.?Turns out that most of us can think just fine to the end.Dementia rates are dropping, too.?The real epidemic is anxiety over memory loss.
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I also figured that old people were depressed?because they were old and they were going to die soon.
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It turns out that the longer people live,?the less they fear dying,?and that people are happiest at the beginnings and the end of their lives.?It's called the U-curve of happiness,?and it's been borne out by dozens of studies around the world.?You don't have to be a Buddhist or a billionaire.?The curve is a function of the way aging itself affects the brain.
01:18
So I started feeling a lot better about getting older,?and I started obsessing about why so few people know these things.?The reason is ageism:?discrimination and stereotyping on the basis of age.?We experience it anytime someone assumes we're too old for something,?instead of finding out who we are and what we're capable of,?or too young.?Ageism cuts both ways.?All -isms are socially constructed ideas -- racism, sexism, homophobia --?and that means we make them up,?and they can change over time.?All these prejudices pit us against each other?to maintain the status quo,?like auto workers in the US competing against auto workers in Mexico?instead of organizing for better wages.
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We know it's not OK to allocate resources by race or by sex.?Why should it be OK to weigh the needs of the young against the old??All prejudice relies on "othering" -- seeing a group of people?as other than ourselves:?other race, other religion, other nationality.?The strange thing about ageism:?that other is us.?Ageism feeds on denial -- our reluctance to acknowledge?that we are going to become that older person.?It's denial when we try to pass for younger?or when we believe in anti-aging products,?or when we feel like our bodies are betraying us,?simply because they are changing.?Why on earth do we stop celebrating the ability to adapt and grow?as we move through life??Why should aging well mean struggling to look and move?like younger versions of ourselves??It's embarrassing to be called out as older?until we quit being embarrassed about it,?and it's not healthy to go through life dreading our futures.?The sooner we get off this hamster wheel of age denial,?the better off we are.
03:13
Stereotypes are always a mistake, of course,?but especially when it comes to age,?because the longer we live,?the more different from one another we become.?Right? Think about it.?And yet, we tend to think of everyone in a retirement home?as the same age: old --
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when they can span four decades.?Can you imagine thinking that way about a group of peoplebetween the ages of 20 and 60?
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When you get to a party, do you head for people your own age??Have you ever grumbled about entitled millennials??Have you ever rejected a haircut or a relationship or an outing?because it's not age-appropriate??For adults, there's no such thing.?All these behaviors are ageist.?We all do them,?and we can't challenge bias unless we're aware of it.?Nobody's born ageist,?but it starts at early childhood,around the same time attitudes towards race and gender start to form,?because negative messages about late life bombard us?from the media and popular culture at every turn.?Right? Wrinkles are ugly.Old people are pathetic.?It's sad to be old.
04:16
Look at Hollywood.?A survey of recent Best Picture nominations?found that only 12 percent of speaking or named characters?were age 60 and up,?and many of them were portrayed as impaired.Older people can be the most ageist of all,?because we've had a lifetime to internalize these messages?and we've never thought to challenge them.?I had to acknowledge it?and stop colluding."Senior moment" quips, for example:?I stopped making them when it dawned on me?that when I lost the car keys in high school,?I didn't call it a "junior moment."
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I stopped blaming my sore knee on being 64.?My other knee doesn't hurt,?and it's just as old.
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We are all worried about some aspect of getting older,?whether running out of money,?getting sick, ending up alone,?and those fears are legitimate and real.?But what never dawns on most of us?is that the experience of reaching old age?can be better or worse depending on the culture?in which it takes place.?It is not having a vagina that makes life harder for women.?It's sexism.
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It's not loving a man that makes life harder for gay guys.?It's homophobia.?And it is not the passage of time that makes getting older?so much harder than it has to be.?It is ageism.?When labels are hard to read?or there's no handrail?or we can't open the damn jar,?we blame ourselves,?our failure to age successfully,?instead of the ageism that makes those natural transitions shameful?and the discrimination that makes those barriers acceptable.?You can't make money off satisfaction,?but shame and fear create markets,?and capitalism always needs new markets.?Who says wrinkles are ugly??The multi-billion-dollar skin care industry.?Who says perimenopause and low T and mild cognitive impairment?are medical conditions??The trillion-dollar pharmaceutical industry.
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The more clearly we see these forces at work,?the easier it is to come up with alternative, more positive?and more accurate narratives.?Aging is not a problem to be fixed or a disease to be cured.?It is a natural, powerful, lifelong process that unites us all.
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Changing the culture is a tall order, I know that, but culture is fluid.?Look at how much the position of women has changed in my lifetime?or the incredible strides that the gay rights movement?has made in just a few decades, right?
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Look at gender.?We used to think of it as a binary, male or female,?and now we understand it's a spectrum.?It is high time to ditch the old-young binary, too.?There is no line in the sand between old and young,?after which it's all downhill.?And the longer we wait to challenge that idea,?the more damage it does to ourselves and our place in the world,?like in the workforce, where age discrimination is rampant.?In Silicon Valley, engineers are getting Botoxed and hair-plugged?before key interviews --?and these are skilled white men in their 30s,?so imagine the effects further down the food chain.
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The personal and economic consequences are devastating.?Not one stereotype about older workers holds up under scrutiny.?Companies aren't adaptable and creative because their employees are young;?they're adaptable and creative despite it.?Companies --
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We know that diverse companies aren't just better places to work;?they work better.?And just like race and sex, age is a criterion for diversity.
07:50
A growing body of fascinating research?shows that attitudes towards aging?affect how our minds and bodies function at the cellular level.?When we talk to older people like this (Speaks more loudly)?or call them "sweetie" or "young lady" --?it's called elderspeak --?they appear to instantly age,?walking and talking less competently.?People with more positive feelings towards aging?walk faster,?they do better on memory tests,?they heal quicker, and they live longer.?Even with brains full of plaques and tangles,some people stayed sharp to the end.?What did they have in common??A sense of purpose.?And what's the biggest obstacle to having a sense of purpose in late life??A culture that tells us that getting older means shuffling offstage.?That's why the World Health Organization is developing?a global anti-ageism initiative?to extend not just life span but health span.
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Women experience the double whammy?of ageism and sexism,?so we experience aging differently.There's a double standard at work here -- shocker --
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the notion that aging enhances men and devalues women.?Women reinforce this double standard when we compete to stay young,?another punishing and losing proposition.?Does any woman in this room really believe?that she is a lesser version --?less interesting, less fun in bed, less valuable --?than the woman she once was??This discrimination affects our health,?our well-being and our income,?and the effects add up over time.?They are further compounded by race and by class,?which is why, everywhere in the world,?the poorest of the poor are old women of color.
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What's the takeaway from that map??By 2050, one out of five of us,?almost two billion people,?will be age 60 and up.?Longevity is a fundamental hallmark of human progress.?All these older people represent a vast unprecedented and untapped market.?And yet, capitalism and urbanization have propelled age bias?into every corner of the globe,?from Switzerland, where elders fare the best,?to Afghanistan, which sits at the bottom of the Global AgeWatch Index.?Half of the world's countries aren't mentioned on that list?because we don't bother to collect data on millions of people?because they're no longer young.?Almost two-thirds of people over 60 around the world?say they have trouble accessing healthcare.?Almost three-quarters say their income doesn't cover basic services?like food, water, electricity, and decent housing.?Is this the world we want our children, who may well live to be a hundred,?to inherit??Everyone -- all ages, all genders, all nationalities --?is old or future-old,?and unless we put an end to it, ageism will oppress us all.?And that makes it a perfect target for collective advocacy.
10:43
Why add another -ism to the list when so many, racism in particular,?call out for action??Here's the thing:?we don't have to choose.?When we make the world a better place to grow old in,?we make it a better place in which to be from somewhere else,?to have a disability,?to be queer, to be non-rich, to be non-white.?And when we show up at all ages for whatever cause matters most to us --?save the whales, save the democracy --?we not only make that effort more effective,?we dismantle ageism in the process.
11:15
Longevity is here to stay.?A movement to end ageism is underway.?I'm in it, and I hope you will join me.
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Thank you. Let's do it! Let's do it!
終結(jié)年齡歧視
在座的每個(gè)人終將會(huì)變得怎樣菠镇？?變老。?大部分人想到這個(gè) 都嚇得不敢動(dòng)彈。?你對那個(gè)詞的感覺是什么调缨？我曾經(jīng)也有同感晴弃。?我最擔(dān)心的是什么雕憔？?以在陰暗的療養(yǎng)院的 過道上淌著口水告終逾雄。?然后我發(fā)現(xiàn)只有4%的美國老年人?住在療養(yǎng)院含懊，?而且這一比例在下降结借。?我還擔(dān)心什么筐摘？?老年癡呆。?但是大部分人直到死之前 腦子也還能運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)。?老年癡呆的比例也在下降蓄拣。?真正的流行病是 對失憶的焦慮扬虚。
我也在想老年人很憂郁，?因?yàn)樗麄兝狭?而且快要死了球恤。
結(jié)果發(fā)現(xiàn)人們活得越久辜昵，?就越不害怕死亡。?人們在出生和死亡之時(shí) 是最快樂的咽斧。?這是快樂U型曲線堪置，?是被全球許多研究證明的。?你不必成為佛教徒 或是億萬富翁张惹。?這條曲線展示變老 是如何影響大腦的舀锨。
所以我開始感到變老 不是那么糟糕了。?我也開始好奇為什么 沒幾個(gè)人懂得這些道理宛逗。?原因在于年齡歧視坎匿，?即基于年齡的歧視和偏見。?比如有人說我們太老了雷激， 不能做某事替蔬，?而不關(guān)心我們是誰 我們能做什么。?或者說我們太年輕屎暇。?這兩種都是年齡歧視承桥。?所有的“主義”都是社會(huì)構(gòu)建的意識， 像種族主義根悼、性別歧視及同性戀恐懼凶异。?這意味著這些都是 我們自己創(chuàng)造出來的，?而且它們是可以隨著時(shí)間改變的挤巡。?因?yàn)檫@些偏見剩彬，我們互相爭斗，?使得現(xiàn)狀難以改變玄柏。?就好像美國汽車工人和 墨西哥汽車工人斗爭襟衰，?而不是團(tuán)結(jié)起來提高工資。
我們知道不能根據(jù) 種族或性別分配資源粪摘，?那又怎么能把年輕人 的需求和老年人相比較瀑晒？?所有的偏見都基于 “異化”——把一群人?當(dāng)做自己之外的群體：?其他種族、其他宗教徘意、 其他國籍苔悦。?年齡歧視的奇怪之處在于那個(gè)所謂的“異” 是我們自己。?年齡歧視來自否認(rèn)—— 我們不愿意承認(rèn)?我們終將變老椎咧。?這種否認(rèn)體現(xiàn)在希望“逆生長”?或者迷信抗衰老產(chǎn)品玖详，?或者覺得我們的身體 在背叛我們把介，?但其實(shí)只是身體 在發(fā)生自然變化。為什么一路走來蟋座，我們不再為?增強(qiáng)的適應(yīng)力和生長 歡欣鼓舞了呢拗踢？?為什么優(yōu)雅老去就意味著 拼命讓自己的外表和行為?要和年輕時(shí)一樣呢？?我們自己不以變老為恥向臀，?才不會(huì)覺得被人說老丟臉巢墅。?而且時(shí)刻擔(dān)心著未來 是不健康的。?越早走出否認(rèn)自己年齡 的死循環(huán)中券膀，?我們會(huì)變得越好君纫。
刻板印象總是錯(cuò)的，?而年齡歧視更是如此芹彬。?因?yàn)槲覀兓畹迷骄茫?我們彼此就變得越不相同蓄髓，?對吧？想想看舒帮。?然而会喝，我們卻默認(rèn)住在療養(yǎng)院的人?都是一個(gè)年齡——老人。
而他們的年齡跨度可達(dá)40歲会前。?你能說一群20歲到60歲的人?都差不多大嗎好乐？
你在派對上是不是 只和同齡人一起玩？?你是否抱怨過新一代的年輕人瓦宜？?你是否放棄一個(gè)發(fā)型， 一段關(guān)系或者一次約會(huì)岭妖，?只因在年齡上不合適临庇？?對成年人來說，根本沒有這回事昵慌。?這些行為都是年齡歧視假夺。?我們都這么做，?只有意識到偏見的存在斋攀， 我們才能去挑戰(zhàn)它已卷。?年齡歧視并非與生俱來，?而是形成于童年早期淳蔼。?與此同時(shí)形成的還有 對于種族和性別的態(tài)度侧蘸。?因?yàn)槲覀兠繒r(shí)每刻都在被 媒體和流行文化中?關(guān)于晚年生活的負(fù)面信息轟炸。?不是嗎鹉梨？皺紋太難看讳癌，?老人很可憐，?變老很可悲存皂。
看看好萊塢晌坤。?一項(xiàng)關(guān)于最近的 “最佳影片”提名的調(diào)查?發(fā)現(xiàn)有臺詞或是名字的 角色中只有12%?年齡在60歲及以上。?他們中有許多 都是有缺陷的形象。?我們老年人的年齡歧視觀 可能是最嚴(yán)重的骤菠，?因?yàn)槲覀冇靡簧?來內(nèi)化這些信息它改。?我們從沒想過 提出異議。?我不得不承認(rèn)這一點(diǎn)商乎，?并停止內(nèi)化負(fù)面信息央拖。?比如，“這一刻我老了”的玩笑?我不再開這種玩笑截亦， 因?yàn)槲蚁氲?在高中弄丟車鑰匙時(shí)?我沒有說“這一刻我還小”爬泥。
我不再抱怨說我酸痛的 一側(cè)膝蓋64歲了。?另一邊膝蓋不疼崩瓤，?卻也64歲了袍啡。
我們都在擔(dān)心變老 帶來的一些問題，?像是錢用完了却桶，?或者生病境输、獨(dú)居，?這些恐懼合情合理 而且真實(shí)存在颖系。?但大多數(shù)人不應(yīng)該認(rèn)為?步入老年后的生活?會(huì)變得更好或更壞嗅剖。?這好和壞取決于所處的文化。?讓女性的生活更為艱辛的嘁扼， 不是生理結(jié)構(gòu)的差異信粮，?而是性別歧視。
讓男同性戀生活更艱難的 不是愛上一個(gè)男人趁啸，?而是社會(huì)對同性戀的排斥强缘。?給老年生活增加額外困難的，不是時(shí)間的流逝不傅，?而是年齡歧視旅掂。?當(dāng)商標(biāo)看不清，?或者沒有扶手访娶，?或者那可惡的罐頭打不開時(shí)商虐，?我們責(zé)怪自己，?怪自己輸給了年齡崖疤，?而忘記了是年齡歧視使 這自然的過渡成為羞恥秘车，?使生活的障礙變得可以理解。?人人都滿意的地方?jīng)]有商機(jī)戳晌，?但羞恥和恐懼卻能創(chuàng)造市場鲫尊，?而資本主義總是需要新市場。?是誰說皺紋丑的沦偎？?是市值幾十億美金的 護(hù)膚產(chǎn)業(yè)疫向。?是誰說絕經(jīng)咳蔚、男性功能障礙 和輕度認(rèn)知障礙?是疾病搔驼？?是市值上萬億美元的 制藥產(chǎn)業(yè)谈火。
我們對其中的運(yùn)作 看得越清楚，?越能產(chǎn)生另一種更積極舌涨、?更準(zhǔn)確的認(rèn)識糯耍。?變老不是需要解決的問題， 也不是需要治療的疾病囊嘉。?它是一個(gè)自然的温技、強(qiáng)大的 生命歷程，把所有人連結(jié)起來扭粱。
改變文化很難舵鳞，這我知道， 但文化會(huì)流動(dòng)變化琢蛤。?看看女性地位在我經(jīng)歷的 時(shí)代里變化多大蜓堕，?看看同性戀運(yùn)動(dòng) 在短短幾十年里?取得多了不起的進(jìn)展，對吧博其？
看看性別觀念套才。?我們曾經(jīng)認(rèn)為性別是二元的， 只有男或女慕淡，?現(xiàn)在我們了解了 性別是連續(xù)的頻譜背伴。?同樣，當(dāng)前正應(yīng)該拋棄 “老或少”的二元年齡觀峰髓。?在年老和年少之間 沒有一條明確的界限挂据，?過了那條線都是下坡路。?我們越是等待這種觀念自行改變儿普，?其對我們自身和我們的地位 造成的損害越大。?例如在普遍有年齡歧視的職場中掷倔。?在硅谷眉孩，工程師們都會(huì) 打醫(yī)療美容針，做植發(fā)勒葱，?才去參加關(guān)鍵的面試浪汪。?這還是三十多歲、 專業(yè)過硬的白人男性凛虽。?所以想象一下在食物鏈 更下層的影響死遭。
這對個(gè)人和經(jīng)濟(jì)的 影響是災(zāi)難性的。?對大齡職員的偏見 都經(jīng)不住檢驗(yàn)凯旋。?企業(yè)不是因?yàn)槠鋯T工年輕 才具有適應(yīng)性和創(chuàng)新能力呀潭。?就算沒有很多年輕雇員也行钉迷。?企業(yè)——我們都知道人員多樣化的企業(yè) 不僅是更好的工作環(huán)境，?也運(yùn)作得更好钠署。?就像種族和性別糠聪， 年齡意味著多樣化。
越來越多的驚人研究?顯示對老齡的態(tài)度?影響了我們的大腦和身體 在細(xì)胞層面上的運(yùn)作谐鼎。?當(dāng)我們和年長的人 這樣講話（說話更大聲）舰蟆，?或稱呼他們“甜心”或“年輕女士”的時(shí)候——?也就是所謂的“老人腔調(diào)”——?他們似乎一下就老了，?走路和說話方式趨于弱勢狸棍。?有些人對年老的態(tài)度更積極身害，?他們走路更快，?在記憶力測試中 表現(xiàn)得更好草戈，?康復(fù)得更快塌鸯， 活得越久。?即使是大腦布滿了 團(tuán)塊和結(jié)節(jié)猾瘸，?一些人直到生命將盡 仍然思維敏捷界赔。?他們有什么共同點(diǎn)？?目的性牵触。?在晚年仍有目標(biāo) 的最大障礙是什么淮悼？?將老去等同于被淘汰 的文化觀念。?因此揽思，世衛(wèi)組織在進(jìn)行?一項(xiàng)反年齡歧視的全球性運(yùn)動(dòng)袜腥，?不僅是要延長生命，還要 延長保持健康的時(shí)間钉汗。
女性遭受兩重歧視羹令，?既有年齡歧視， 又有性別歧視损痰，?因而老去的過程 別有一番滋味福侈。?職場中有一個(gè) 雙重標(biāo)準(zhǔn)令人震驚：
年齡增長使男人升值， 卻使女人貶值卢未。?當(dāng)女人競相要留住青春肪凛， 這個(gè)觀念進(jìn)一步固化。?另一個(gè)觀念具有懲罰和失敗的意味辽社。?在場的女同胞們伟墙，你們真的相信?現(xiàn)在的自己是個(gè)次品——?與從前的自己相比，更無趣滴铅， 更難享受床笫之歡戳葵，?更沒有價(jià)值？?這個(gè)歧視影響著我們的健康汉匙、?生活質(zhì)量和收入拱烁。?隨著時(shí)間流逝生蚁， 這些影響越來越強(qiáng)。?種族和社會(huì)階級的壓力邻梆， 加強(qiáng)了負(fù)面影響守伸。?這就是為什么 世界上的任何地方?最最貧窮的是 有色民族的老女人。
地圖上顯而易見的是什么浦妄？?是到了2050年尼摹，我們中 每五個(gè)就有一個(gè)，?也就是將近兩百萬人剂娄，?將會(huì)達(dá)到或超過60歲蠢涝。?長壽是人類社會(huì)進(jìn)步的 一個(gè)基本特征。?這些年老人群意味著一個(gè)巨大的阅懦、 前所未有的和二、沒有被觸及的市場。?然而耳胎，資本主義和城市化 使得對老齡的偏見?在全球的每一個(gè)角落擴(kuò)散惯吕，?從老年人生活最好的瑞士，?到在全球老年人生活狀況指數(shù)中 排名墊底的阿富汗怕午。?但那個(gè)排名遺漏了 全世界一半的國家废登，因?yàn)槿藗儾辉敢馔度刖?去收集近兩百萬人的數(shù)據(jù)，?因?yàn)檫@些人已不再年輕郁惜。?全世界60歲以上人口中堡距， 將近三分之二表示?他們得不到醫(yī)療服務(wù)。?近四分之三的人說他們的收入 滿足不了基本生活需求兆蕉，?比如食物羽戒、水凉馆、電 和像樣的住房蝶锋。?我們的孩子也許能活到上百歲， 這難道是我們想要留給他們的?世界嗎吟秩？?每個(gè)人包蓝，無論年齡缩多， 無論性別，無論國籍养晋，?都終將變老。?我們必須果斷行動(dòng)梁钾，否則 都會(huì)面臨年齡歧視的壓力绳泉。?于是我們就有了一個(gè) 集體倡議的完美目標(biāo)。
我們已經(jīng)有如此多的“主義” 需要消除姆泻，尤其是種族主義零酪，?又何必另添一個(gè)冒嫡？?事實(shí)是，?這些主義不分先后四苇。這個(gè)世界一旦變成 可以安然老去的地方孝凌，?也就變成人們可以 坦然面對出身異國、?身有殘疾月腋、?與眾不同蟀架、生活不富裕、 身為有色民族的身份榆骚。?無論是幾歲片拍，當(dāng)我們?yōu)樽约?最重視的東西挺身而出——?拯救鯨魚或是維護(hù)民主——?我們不僅是在使 這些行動(dòng)更加高效，?在這一過程中也是 在消除年齡歧視妓肢。
我們將更加長壽捌省。?結(jié)束年齡歧視的運(yùn)動(dòng)在進(jìn)行中。?我是其中一員碉钠，我希望你們也加入我纲缓。
謝謝，讓我們行動(dòng)起來喊废！行動(dòng)起來祝高！
