In her interview with ‘Correio dos Açores’, sociologist Piedade Lalanda points out that, in the case of the Azores, the data reveals “a greater legitimization of violent behaviour in marital relationships, including dating. This legitimization favours greater ‘acceptance’ and ‘naturalization’ of violence, diminishes the victims and takes away their ability to denounce it, whether they are women, elderly people or people with disabilities.” It is also evident that “the abuse of power, which is reflected in sexual harassment in the workplace, has not disappeared, even when it is not reported. And child abuse, which is increasingly being reported, is another form of violent power, over people who depend on and trust the aggressors, who disrespect their dignity and intimacy.”

Correio dos Açores – Nowadays we talk about ageism. What ideas should we retain from this concept?
Piedade Lalanda (Sociologist) – Ageism corresponds to negative attitudes and behaviors towards others, based on a single dimension of the person, their age. Generally, “ageist” behavior is based on the idea that others, young or old, are “all the same.” For example, when someone refers to young people as “irresponsible” or to the elderly as “incapable and sick”, they are attributing to them a characteristic that does not define them as people, but rather devalues them because of their age.
This generalization, based on preconceived ideas, stereotypes, and prejudices, generates feelings of disdain and leads to practices/behaviors of rejection and discrimination or, as is sometimes the case with older people, excessive help and over-protection, which ignore the autonomy of the elderly, while at the same time promoting their greater dependence and incapacity.
Age discrimination violates the Charter of Human Rights, Article 21 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, the Portuguese Constitution, and the Labor Code.

This practice is considered the third biggest form of prejudice in the world after racism and sexism. Is there any justification for this?
Our society exalts youth as an ideal condition. Young age is associated with a fit body, beauty and agility, opportunities for the future, and, above all, a longer life span. In this context, older people have no place. They are out of the “productive” picture, they have lost their agility and beauty, they are more likely to suffer from chronic health problems, and they are or are kept out of the processes of innovation and change.
But ageism doesn’t just affect older people. It affects young people most when they are not listened to, or their ideas are devalued when they are shunned for denouncing injustices or pointing out the mistakes of their elders, sometimes aggressively, as has happened with climate issues.
Discriminatory practices reflect societies that lack solidarity and are incapable of integrating differences or listening to different voices and perspectives.
This inability is learned from childhood when children are not educated in an intergenerational context and are not taught the principles of cooperation and mutual aid. The isolation of the generations fosters mutual ignorance: the younger ones don’t want to learn from their elders, and the latter don’t understand the challenges facing the new generations.

Discrimination between age groups is mainly directed at older people, but there is also prejudice against younger people among older people. What are the underlying reasons?
As already mentioned, ageism is not only about discriminatory behavior towards older people. Young people can also be victims of discrimination. Take the example of children who are victims or spectators of violence perpetrated by adults, whose narratives are not always taken into account. There are young people in companies and universities who carry out research and innovation work presented as being carried out by “seniors.”
Labor legislation calls the age group between 18 and 66.7 active and the rest inactive. A person who studies, works at home, or has retired is considered inactive and, therefore, “non-productive” and “non-contributing.” This economic view devalues the word of these population groups as if they don’t receive a salary, they don’t have an equal right to intervene and participate.

In your opinion, what kinds of prejudices exist in Azorean society?
Azorean society is not immune to prejudiced behavior resulting from a lack of information, poor contact with the realities of different others, fear of the unknown, and attitudes of supposed self-protection and security. Take, for example, how we talk about a “beneficiary of the social insertion income”, the “disabled person”, the boy who chooses nursing over medicine or the girl who prefers to be a policewoman rather than an educator.
Situations related to gender, socio-economic status (receiving social security benefits), and the community of residence: For those who live in a slum or run-down area, the fact of having a disability generates situations of discrimination in different contexts, including school, employment, housing, health, and social protection.
In all these situations, there is a preconceived idea of what “should” be the behavior or what is expected of the “other”. That’s why it’s always a shock for those who are prejudiced to find that reality doesn’t correspond to their internalized image. But this “shock” is fundamental. From this confrontation, changes can occur in thinking and, consequently, in behavior.
Prejudice stunts the ability to hear and understand reality and distorts the reading of behavior and conditions communication. Understanding can only be opened up to differences by increasing (inter)knowledge.

The youth unemployment rate in the Azores is 18.7%…

How does ageism manifest itself in the Azores?
One indicator that could be related to ageism is the much higher youth unemployment rate, which is much higher than the overall rate. With data from 2023 (INE), the unemployment rate in the Azores was 6.5, and the unemployment rate for young people (aged 16 to 24) was 18.7. Some employers may opt for older, more experienced candidates, even if they are less qualified, to the detriment of young, qualified people looking for their first job.
Another form of ageism can be seen in the treatment of older people, particularly when they are institutionalized. Sometimes they are treated as “useless”, “incapable”, they are too “medicalized” and are not encouraged to lead an active life. Instead, they are infantilized or treated as “less capable.” For example, some people speak to elderly people, regardless of their condition, raising their voices and slurring their pronunciation of words, as if they didn’t understand their mother tongue and were “deaf”.

According to a study by David Patient, age prejudice is considered one of the most socially acceptable forms of prejudice in the workplace. Do you agree? And in the Azores, is there age prejudice in the workplace?
In the workplace, prejudice occurs when the knowledge of an older worker is overlooked, and this experience is not used to integrate younger workers and promote change without destroying what has been achieved and conquered, certainly with a lot of trial and error. Prejudice also occurs when younger workers don’t have the opportunity to participate in decisions and don’t have the space to present credible alternatives. This prejudice is sometimes exacerbated when there are young women who are better qualified than their older male colleagues.
These phenomena are not quantified, so we cannot say how much age prejudice affects the Azorean labor market, whether in the private or public sector. Each company/organization will know whether to foster intergenerational relations or, on the contrary, alienate one of the generations by betting on the older age group because “it’s always been done this way” or, on the contrary, by refusing to criticize seniors because “modernity comes from the young.”
Over time, work organizations take on a life of their own. That’s why it’s important to carry out a social diagnosis of how they work on a regular basis to identify any discretionary and discriminatory practices incorporated into work routines.

Ageism is also evident when people don’t leave their comfort zone…

What areas of an individual’s life are affected?
Ageism, like racism and sexism, limits individual freedom and denounces a lack of respect for human dignity. They are forms of exercising power, domination, and control over an “other” who, because they are different, is pushed aside and conditioned in their freedom of participation and expression. Therefore, this type of phenomenon can affect family life and intergenerational relationships, isolating older people in particular from the younger generations; it affects the world of work, impoverishing the sharing of experiences and learning, often leading to starting again from “scratch,” without considering the path taken and the knowledge previously acquired. It also affects political life and society whenever measures or decisions separate generations, hinder intergenerational sharing, and isolate some from others. Take, for example, the lack of rooms for displaced university students and the number of elderly people living alone who can afford to house one of these students.
In the labor market, ageism manifests itself in various ways. Someone can be “too old for”, regardless of their skills, experience or professional competence, or too young “without experience”, even when what they are looking for is exactly an opportunity to gain that experience.
Ageism also applies in the fashion industry, when it produces clothing with only the youngest, slimmest, and most agile customers in mind; in lifestyle management, when people themselves exclude themselves from practicing certain activities (for example, going to the gym) or doing certain experiments (getting out of their comfort zone) because they think it’s “not for their age,” often aggravating their physical and mental aging process through lack of stimulation and motivation.

Is ageism proportional to gender discrimination? Is this practice yet another form of exclusion for women in general? And for Azorean women?
Ageism affects the social structure as a form of segregation/exclusion, just like the others already mentioned.
When we talk about gender discrimination, we are touching on a structural dimension of the constitution of society itself, transversal and present in various areas, from family roles to educational models, from vocational choices to professions, or the value attributed to the work done. This is discrimination that can be identified not only in the world of work or in family relationships but which underlies the text of the laws that govern society, in political life, and in conceptions of power, competence, and social value; it affects economic life, advertising and the way we communicate and relate to each other.
Whenever there is segregation or exclusion, there is an increased risk of violent practices, aggression, and humiliation. Unfortunately, we have seen an increase in violence against the elderly, along with violence against women and children. Abuse of power, which translates into sexual harassment in the workplace, has not disappeared, even when it is not reported. Child abuse, which is increasingly being reported, is another form of violent power over people who depend on and trust their abusers, who disrespect their dignity and intimacy.
In the case of the Azores, the data reveals a greater legitimization of violent behavior in marital relationships, including dating. This legitimization favors greater “acceptance” and “naturalization” of violence, diminishes the victims, and takes away their ability to denounce it, whether they are women, elderly people, or people with disabilities.

How can we combat the stereotypes associated with this form of prejudice?
The magic formula is understanding and dialog, which means intergenerational communication. The more isolated the generations are from each other, the easier it is for distancing/segregating behaviors and attitudes to exist.
Knowing how to listen to each other’s point of view doesn’t mean agreeing or having the same vision. In fact, it’s difficult to do so when decades have passed between the authors. But being able to understand the other person’s point of view, contextualizing that perception in the conditions in which they live and the challenges they face, facilitates rapprochement and generational integration.
We’re living longer and longer, and that’s a good thing! Older people can’t be put away in “society’s closet,” so only young people can enjoy the society they helped build. Older people are experiencing the frailties inherent in age, at stages further and further back in time, so we need to encourage and boost the skills and contribution of the “grey” generation, particularly pensioners, who are usually the majority of volunteers in many civic solidarity movements, where young people are lacking. The older generation needs to be involved in educating the younger generation because there is knowledge and learning that benefits both. There is a lack of older people in terms of culture, arts, or physical activity.
There are elderly people who are great trainers, “libraries” of traditional knowledge, and who can bring a lot of innovation to the restaurant industry. They can contribute to greater knowledge and affirmation of regional identity and preserve the historical and cultural heritage of the communities where they live.

Do you have anything else to add on this subject?
We can and must be a society that is friendly not just to the “elderly” or to “children and young people” but also to intergenerational coexistence.

Neuza Almeida is a journalist for the Correio dos Açores - Natalino Vivieiros, director

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.