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5 - Escaping ageism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 January 2024

Marion Repetti
Affiliation:
Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz, Switzerland
Toni Calasanti
Affiliation:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
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Summary

Introduction

Joseph and Margaret, both aged 63, are an American married couple of 34 years. They retired early and have lived in Mexico for the past four years. Margaret worked as a high-school teacher and principal; Joseph worked in a managerial capacity for a non-profit organisation. Both had grown up on the West Coast and by the ocean, and had hoped to stay there. However, despite their professional backgrounds and middle-class status, by their late 50s, they began to see that the cost of living in their city ruled out a decent life there. They still had a mortgage to pay on their house, and they described themselves as living paycheque to paycheque. Moving to Mexico allowed them to live debt-free and still be by the ocean, as well as close enough to family (their son, siblings and a mother) that they could visit.

Part of what they enjoyed about Mexico was the way that they were treated by the local populations. As Joseph said:

‘I don't think they see us as retirees. … They just see people that live here. … I think that's the beauty of it. … I think that's a product of culture, as well, down here. … You know that … the older generation is thought of, and cared for, and included … as they would do any other member of their family.’

He contrasted what he perceived as respect for older people in Mexico with what he saw in the US. Reflecting an awareness of inequalities, Margaret expanded on this feeling of inclusion as ‘just people’, juxtaposing this to the feelings of invisibility that older women face in the US:

‘I think that one of the things that I sometimes experience in the United States, as an older woman, is the feeling of being invisible. Like I can, even in stores … that happens, and it's like amazing to me that I’m, like, “Wow, I’ve just asked you a question and you’re then helping somebody behind me” … you know, it's like we become invisible. I don't feel invisible at all here, at all. … That's a difference that I’ve experienced.’

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Publisher: Bristol University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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  • Escaping ageism
  • Marion Repetti, Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz, Switzerland, Toni Calasanti, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  • Book: Retirement Migration and Precarity in Later Life
  • Online publication: 23 January 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.46692/9781447358244.006
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Save book to Dropbox

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  • Escaping ageism
  • Marion Repetti, Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz, Switzerland, Toni Calasanti, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  • Book: Retirement Migration and Precarity in Later Life
  • Online publication: 23 January 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.46692/9781447358244.006
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Escaping ageism
  • Marion Repetti, Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz, Switzerland, Toni Calasanti, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  • Book: Retirement Migration and Precarity in Later Life
  • Online publication: 23 January 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.46692/9781447358244.006
Available formats
×