‘This Chair Rocks’ author Ashton Applewhite on how to fight age discrimination and re-envision the years ahead.
by Marci Alboher
Ashton Applewhite is on a mission to dismantle ageism: both the discrimination we face and the kind we inflict on ourselves when we internalize negative myths and stereotypes. Sexism and racism no longer get a pass, she points out; isn’t it high time to make discrimination on the basis of age just as unacceptable?
Read her new book, This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism, check out her blog “Yo, Is this Ageist?” or catch her giving a live talk, and you won’t feel the same about comments like, “You look great for your age.” You could also read the Next Avenue article about her one-woman show, This Chair Rocks. You’ll find yourself picking up her sticky phrasing, like swapping “olders” (as opposed to “youngers”) for “seniors,” a term no one actually likes.
