Newspaper Page Text
The Augusta News-Review December 8,1984
The Black aged
by John N. Colen. Ph.D
Why is it, that those i'n the
greatest need, yet possessing the
least power and means of im
proving their quality of life, tend
to get the most ineffective response
from society?
Possibly the most profound
question we could as ourselves
today is: Is the Black aged
signigicantly different enough as to
warrant special attention in human
service provision?
Only when we have answered
“yes” to that question can we
begin to explore, in a true sense,
ways to contribute to improving
Jtheir quality of life within their
cultural context, and based upon
the realities of their life experien
ces.
Perhaps the most pervasive
ethical issue affecting the care of
and caring for Black and other
minority elderly persons is the
failure of those in position to in
fluence policy and programming
of care-giving entities to recognize
race as a critical variable in service
provision.
While many might wish to think
otherwise, race is a reality and we
shoul not deny it. Insofar as Black
and other minority old people are
concerned, they cannot be treated
as white old people: they are not.
Racism has adversely affected
their preparation for old age.
What are some of the realities of
the Black experience and what
meaning do these experiences have
for aging?
Exi .nee has taught us and
researen has validated the fact that
a person's circumstances are
largely determined by the inter
relationship between societal for-
■■yw WF
It®" > W lf
f f S ? < ' / -■?
I at 'J A \ V /
■ i ■
’ * Mil /
..wgf
yb<l •■ •' , ...
* * 7< < ;
James Baldwin
On Black men and women
NEW YORK—Last year, at the
invitation of ESSENCE Magazine,
world-renowned authors James
Baldwin and Audre Lorde met for
the first time on the campus of
Hampshire College in Anherst,
MA. An excerpt from their
fascinating five-hour discussion
appears in the December issue.
Media impacts on voters
WASHINGTON A study at
Howard University indicates that
the post-debate meida analyses
may have had greater impact on
voter attitudes than the presiden
tial debate themselves.
Howard social psychologist
Lloyd R. Sloan found in an “at
titude-change experiment” that a
network TV news analysis
following the foreign-policy debate
swayed attitudes in favor of
presidential candidate Walter F.
Mondale while the debate itself
produced no overall shift in can
didate preferences.
But the psychology professor
was not surprised.
In collecting data on the effects
of presidential debates and post
debate news analyses since 1976,
Sloan has discovered that the
media have shifted attitudes in the
opposite direction of attitude
changes resulting from both the
1976 and 1980 debates, as well as
the most recent presidential
debate. “Although the ‘B4 debate
Page 2
ces, personality and family or t
cultural group membership. As
one grows and develops, each is
expected to make certain con
tributions to an individual’s sur
vival and adjustments to life’s
transitions.
Being Black, in this country,
historically, has been synonymous
with being singled out for differen
tial and inequitable treatment on
the basis of physical or cultural
characteristics.
Culturally, however, member
ship in one’s own group has been
the individual’s primary nuturing
environment. Within this context
one develops his sense of self, his
values, and rites of passage are
determined, that is, the timing of
events including, behavioral expec
tations at various ages.
Through this socialization
process, perceptions of and at
titudes toward aging, roles and
copig patterns are refined.
In considering perceptions of
age, it is interesting to note that
elderly Blacks tend to view them
selves as old at an earlier age than
whites. This might be related to
process beginning during
childhood.
Black children mature more
rapidly because of the adult
responsibvilities they are com
pelled to assume at a very early
age. Individuals deprived of the
luxury of an extended childhood
may simply feel older sooner. Or,
forced as they are to endure
lifetimes in racially hostile en
vironments. Blacks may react by
feeling older earlier.
In a similar vein, studies reveal
that a greater percentage of aged
whites compared to elderly Blacks,
view of themselves as younger than
Baldwin and Lorde bring to
their vision of the future of Black
Americans their perspectives as a
Black man and Black woman.
Through their conversation, one
can hear the conflicts and convic
tions, vulnerabilities and strengths
didn’t produce a shift, the analysis
did which indicates that
analyses change people’s attitudes
in ways that the debates do not,”
he emphasizes.
Sloan measured the attitudes of
152 Howard University un
dergraduates who participated in a
controlled viewing of the televised
Oct. 21 debate. Os this group, all
of whom were Black students, 8
percent initially supported
President Reagan, 10 percent were
unsure of a perference and 82 per
cent supported Mondale.
Students in the study also viewed
the CBS-TV news analysis
following the debate. “The
presidential debates offer a unique
opportunity for the viewer to wit
ness the entire event of interest
and/or the news report of the
event,” says Sloan.
To measure the net shift in at
titudes, the students were asked
before and after the debate:
“Whom would you likely tend to
vote for right now?”
thetT actual chronolgical ages.
This very possibly suggest that the
stigma associated wih being older
is greater for whites than for
Blacks. Withingroup prestige
bestowed upon Black elders may
be more pronounced than that
conferred upon their white coun
terparts; thus, it precludes their
hasty association of age with the
negative views of aging.
Given this, it is not surprising
that older Blacks frequently report
higher levels of life satisfaction en
en when circumstances would seem
to signify otherwise.
Both organizations and family
structure have played pivotal roles
in the ability of elderly Blacks to
cope with the vicissitudes of life.
Discrimination and segregation
fostered the development of
numerous Black institutions, in
cluding fraternal organizations,
self-help groups, women’s clubs,
etc. These provided avenues for
self-expression, the development
of Black youth, and promoted the
general welfare of all Blacks.
Os all the formal organizations
seeking to meet fundamental
human needs, it has been the Black
church that has played the most
widespread and prominent foie in
the lives of Afro-Americans.
The church allowed worshipers a
sense of freedom, recognition, and
serve as a vehicle to develop
leadership abilities. In many in
stances, it has been at the vanguard
of efforts to build Black
educational institutions and, more
recently, has provided much of the
Civil Rights leadership, and the
context within which large groups
of people could be mobilized into
community campaigns seeking
equitable treatment.
'HBF
*< <:■
W l A A * . ■<■'■-
Audre Lorde
between Black men and women.
Baldwin is currently living in
France, where his book about the
Atlanta child murders, Evidence of
Things Not Seen, will soon be
published. Lorde is a professor at
Hunter College in New York City.
Her most recent book is Sister
Outsider.
Racism has adversely affected the preparation of Blacks for Old Age’
After viewing the debate, 15
percent had become more inclined
to vote for Mondale while another
15 percent were more inclined
toward Reagan, leaving 70 percent
whose attitudes apparently were
not affected, including possibly
those who were undecided. Net
result: 0 percent (15-15) overall
shift.
But after viewing the post
debate media analysis, 13 percent
had become more inclined to vote
for Mondale compared with only 2
percent more inclined toward
Reagan, leaving 85 percent whose
attitudes apparently were not af
fected. Net result: 11 percent (13-
2) overall shift toward Mondale.
What’s ironic, however, is that
most of the students whose voting
preferences were measured per
ceived the comments of news
analysts as unbiased in showing
preference toward one candidate
over the other even though the im
pact of the analysis suggests media
influence on voter attitudes.
However, some of the success
achieved during this period has
served inadvertently to create
pressures within many Black
families resulting, in some cases, in
a diminishment of the elder’s role.
For example, it was during the
Civil Rights era that the term
“Black” became accepted as
evidencing a demonstratively
assertive stance with regard to race
and race-relations.
In some instances, elderly Blacks
have found this stance contrary to
their life experience. Thus, con
cern has been generated on the part
of elderly Blacks as to the
emergence of divergent values
between themselves and their of
fspring.
These points are important
because they suggest a reduction in
the ability of Black elders to oc
cupy social roles of responsibility;
e.g., as role models for their gran
dchildren and transmitters of
family history. The clash of values
between young and old, implied by
their differing preferences, has
been found to lead to feelings of
despair among the Black elderly.
Fdr flacks, the system of exten
ded kinship flexibility in family
boundaries and roles, has been an
important coping mechanism
helping family member survive
hardships imposed by society.
That Blacks have been forced to
rely on this survival system more
than whites is popularly assumed,
but has been confirmed by a num
ber of studies.
One benefit of extended kinships
is the potential for greater
assistance with daily respon
sibilities. For example,
examination of Black and white
families reveal that a larger percen-
raRjWWSi
S »
r // 13 Ai>l
B< Jfr I k ?
,<Y • L IfefeM%V V
ST ° w o /ftp 0 V 7
K* 0 * * <> 3° / 0 o h
*C e Z&/ £ V X^fe— ze ’/
, >% 4 \W®(
What Every Good Santa
Should Know About
Short Distance Calling.
Finding the right gift for all those special people on your list
can take some effort. You might even have to make a trip of 50
miles or more.
But the wise Santa calls ahead before heading out. And that s
when Short Distance calling comes in handy
What’s Short Distance calling? With Southern Bell, it’s simply
a call of 50 miles or so. And, in Georgia, a 5-minute Southern Bell
call on weekdays between 8 am. and 5 p.m., dialed direct without
the operator, costs no more than $1.68. And, you can save 50% by
using Short Distance on weekends until 5 p.m. Sunday
That’s Short Distance calling. This holiday season every
good Santa should take advantage of it.
©Southern Bell
A BELLSOUTH Company
Dial Station (1 +) charges apply These charges do not apply to person-to-person, coin, hotel
guest calling card, collect calls, calls charged to another number, or to time and charge calls
Rates'subject to change Applies to intra-LATA long distance calls only.
tage of Black children compared to
whites, assisted their elders in the
chores of daily living and shop
ping.
Nevertheless, a recent trend for
bodes increasingly limited oppor
tunities for direct support of the
Black elderly by their young. This
trend, the reverse migration of
Black (young and old) to the
south, which began as a trickle in
the mid-50’s, has reached dramatic
proportions by the 1970’5.
Thus, while emotional ties and
economic supports can transcend
geographical boundaries, the
provision of instrumental help
with activities of daily living is not
possible when younger family
members migrate southward
toward jobs, leaving behind their
aged.
This is particularly significant
when one considers that, on the
whole, data indicate a pattern of
higher Black involvement in the
provision of assistance, both
emotional and instrumental.
Society is expected to provide a
sustaining environment. The
response of society to the unique
problems of the Black aged is self
evident.
Regardless of whether we
examine the situation with respect
to income, health, housing, life
expectancy or in other areas, it
becomes clear that aged Blacks are
over-represented among those
denied the essential commodities
and creature comforts of society.
When we look at the human ser
vice system, differential patterns
of utilization run the gamut of ser
vices. Agencies do not reflect the
monority experience; hence, they
are less appealing to them.
Routine procedures are designed
inconsistent with their lifestyles
and culture.
Institutions of our society »
traditionally have been lax in ad
dressing the special needs of
minority persons, so it comes as no
surprise that it would be likewise in
the case of the minority aged per
son.
To a large extent, the lack of
responsiveness has resulted from
an institutionalized thought struc
ture which has viewed minority
persons, and particularly poor
minority persons, through an in
dividual deficit model in which the
“victim is blamed.”
Responses to the System, on the
part of the Black aged, are charac
terized by mistrust. Most respon
ses follow one of three basic pat
terns-avoidance, agressions and
passive acceptance, with passive
acceptance predominant.
In any case, the result has been a
disfunctional feedback loop,
whereby their needs go largely
unexpressed because of their
inability to achieve meaningful in
put into the system.
These observations make clear
that the effectiveness of service
delivery systems in meeting the
needs of particular groups of in
dividuals is affected by cultural
diversity. Any effective system of
service delivery that will appeal to
Black elderly persons must include
to culturally responsive programs.
Researchers have documented
the fact that aged Blacks tend to
respon more favorably (1) to those
systems whose staffs reflect their
racial/cultural identity, (2) who
are bicultural, (3) the services are
accessible and abailable within
reasonable distances.