Queer Theory And Older Gays
Older women lesbians are sometimes stigmatized in gay society. As if being outside of mainstream society in general isn’t enough, it seems as though the elderly are actually being pushed aside in queer discourse and therefore, in queer culture. Mainstream society in general focuses on youth as an example of the ideal individuals and thereby forgets about al the people in the world that do not fit this image.
Therefore, any advertisements and accommodations are directed towards young people- even in queer culture. However, there are some amazing vacations directed toward older women lesbians. Travel for single women sparks images of young girls; however, there are many single older women lesbians who can meet singles on women adventure travel. There are luxury accommodations of lesbian women. As today's gay men and lesbians become a more openly recognized part of the group referred to as older adults, they will become more assertive about having their needs met by traditional social service agencies and programs.
While homophobic attitudes may continue to exist in society, acceptance of gay and lesbian lives is growing both in the legal and in the social arena. One optimistic outcome of the small but growing body of research in this area suggests that being comfortable with one's sexual orientation can actually mitigate against the numerous stressors associated with old age. It is difficult to expect that researchers will ever learn very much about old adults who are lesbians or gay males.
Many methodological problems exist that create obstacles to understanding gay and lesbian aging. Most studies focus only on those gay and lesbian adults who are members of political or social organizations or who are known to other gay and lesbian adults. Respondents were selected through community networks of older gay and lesbian people. Studies were frequently confined to one particular group such as professionals or gay and lesbian adults living in the same community.
Location has also been limited to New York, San Francisco or Los Angeles, reflecting an urban bias in the understanding of this population. Additionally, older gay men and lesbians from working-class backgrounds are under-represented, as are adults representing ethnic and racial diversity. It is notable, however, that new research to study African-American aging gay males and to study gay and lesbian adults in rural areas is being launched.
Early studies in this area initially grouped gay men and lesbian together as one study cohort assuming that homosexuality made these men and women more similar than gender made them unique.
There is the additional problem of self-reporting. No viable method has been discovered to study this population other than direct questioning. Depending on who is asking the question and how the questions are administered, there may be great variability in data. Fear of exposing information that has been shared only with a partner or intimate is often extremely threatening to aging gay men and lesbians. Contribution to research knowledge is often not perceived as compelling enough to compromise one's privacy. Importantly, researchers have learned that gay and lesbian adults have some of the same concerns about aging as heterosexual older adults.
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