Current Challenges

Poverty ages 65+
The population of “Other” includes indigenous people and immigrants speaking more than 70 different languages.
Ethnic Death MA
"On April 26, 2023, Statista reported that 852,541, or 76%, of the 1,127, 855 people, who have died of the virus in the US - were aged 65 or older. An earlier New York Times article highlighted how "in interviews across the country, older Americans say that they have continued to endure the isolation, loneliness, and fear associated with the pandemic".

OUR CURRENT CHALLENGES

As our board considers the current and future needs of the elderly African American/Black women living in Boston, we acknowledge their needs are great and growing. We invite you to join with us in our battle to minimize the ongoing effects of the quintuple pandemics we face – sexism, systemic racism, poverty, Covid-19/variants, as well as increased social isolation.

Poverty

serves as a constant companion for many of the elders living in Massachusetts. As this graph depicts, poverty amongst people of color living in this state is greater, by a significant degree, than at the national level. Additionally, a recent study found that the state’s poorest residents are concentrated in Boston and our immediate surroundings. Clearly, systemic racism is alive and well in Massachusetts, and the resulting economic inequities impact all people of color.

Systemic Racism

a pernicious aspect of life in America, continues unabated – despite ongoing conversations about white supremacy and “being anti racist." The senseless murders of people of color across the country continue. In reality, there are few Black, Latinx, Asian and Indigenous people living in Boston who have not personally experienced racism and/or sexism or ageism. Several manifestations of systemic racism are poverty, relentless economic inequities, poor educational outcomes, and the lack of access to health care, nutritious food, safe affordable housing, and much more.

Sexism

Black women’s earnings are 63.0% of white, non-Hispanic men’s earnings – the third-widest gap after Native women (60%) and Hispanic women (55.4%). In comparison, white, non-Hispanic women earn 78.7% of white, non-Hispanic men’s earnings, and Asian women earn 87.1% . The lower salaries earned by women of color limit their ability to save. As a result, they enter retirement with fewer resources than other groups and are, therefore, more dependent on others to live in safe environments and to provide for the own necessities.

The Pandemic

(COVID and its growing number of variants) changed our lives and devastated senior citizens — especially those in nursing homes and long-term care facilities. On April 26, 2023, Statista reported that 852,541, or 76%, of the 1,127, 855 people, who have died of the virus in the US – were aged 65 or older. An earlier New York Times article highlighted how “in interviews across the country, older Americans say that they have continued to endure the isolation, loneliness, and fear associated with the pandemic”. In Massachusetts, senior citizens, reportedly, bore the brunt of the state’s COVID death toll, with elders of color being significantly, and disproportionately impacted. They still are!

Elder Isolation

was initially driven by changing employment trends, with increasing dependence on nursing homes, etc. When the pandemic happened, elder isolation tripled and is now recognized as a major health outcome factor. Current research shows that good relationships are key to both physical as well as mental well-being. Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, says one of the biggest surprises they encountered in his research was that “what makes people happy is also what helps keep them healthy — RELATIONSHIPS. The 85-year long research project, the longest in-depth study of physical and mental well-being among adults, began in 1938 with 724 participants and now includes 1,300 descendants of its original participants. https://www.lifespanresearch.org/harvard-study