Just as transitioning transkids and transteens have forced examinations of access issues and created discrimination battles in our elementary, middle and high schools, the inevitable aging of our first and second wave of transpeople will force us to also consider how we advocate for trans senior issues.If we are already having drama and discrimination issues with the medical profession now, what happens when a senior transperson ends up in a assisted living center or is denied access to it because of transphobia among the staff, residents living there or the people who have power of attorneys to make decisions on behalf of their cis elders?
What happens when wastes of DNA start preying on us as we age and are slowed down by the march of time and age to be confined to scooters, walkers and wheelchairs?
Then again, if we're wielding canes, that might reduce anti-trans violence.
Will the laws that protect seniors from abuse and exploitation be expanded to protect us as well?
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How do we advocate for nursing homes and assisted living centers to be cognizant of and trained to respectfully care for post and non-op senior transmen and transwomen?
How and what will the trans community plan for dealing with a major increase in the trans senior population which is made up of aging baby boomers like myself?
I'm a few years from the day my AARP card hits the mail, so I'm thinking about these issues a lot more than I used to ten years ago.Speaking of AARP, has anyone done Trans 101 or considered doing so to get them prepared for the increase in trans seniors they will see and have to be prepared to advocate for, much less other organizations that are geared toward our senior populations?
It's time our TBLG advocacy organizations start prepping themselves, strategizing and thinking long term about these issues as well and how they will be effective advocates for trans seniors.
Because when that time comes, I'd like a plan to be in place, not muddling along trying to deal with all these trans senior issues at once and feeling overwhelmed because of failure to plan for it.
TransGriot Note: The person in the split picture is trans pioneer April Ashley.
