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Building Protective Networks for LGBTQ+ Elders
 | By: Maddie Thompson, SAGE Intern, MSW CandidateMay 16, 2024
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May 16th is National Honor Our LGBTQ+ Elders Day. This year, we once again reflect on the LGBTQ+ older adults who have paved the way for greater social acceptance and equality for all people. Despite the many gains that have been made, LGBTQ+ older adults continue to face exclusion, stigma, and discrimination without sufficient protections. Networks of support, connection to inclusive providers, helpful resources, and fierce advocacy are critical to supporting equity and elder rights for LGBTQ+ older people.
During the 2023 Missouri Legislative session, I served as a Policy and Advocacy Intern with VOYCE, one of Missouri’s Long-Term Care Ombudsman Programs. I learned about the discrimination encountered by LGBTQ+ residents due to their gender or sexuality. These experiences demonstrated how personal identities like race, gender, sexuality, HIV status, class, and disability status can intersect with age to create a more complex experience of discrimination, neglect, or abuse.
LGBTQ+ older people are twice as likely to be single and live alone and four times less likely to have children. In addition to being at risk for abuse, the loss of support from an abusive individual, fear of isolation, and other factors might prevent an older adult from seeking help when abuse or neglect occurs. LGBTQ+ older adults face additional obstacles such as the threat of being “outed,” distrust in authorities, loss of financial support from the abusive person, a history of self-reliance, and a lifetime of victimization and violence towards the LGBTQ+ community.
Building relationships with LGBTQ+ older adults and engaging LGBTQ+ community members in the work for elder justice is key to offering holistic protection and support. The more community members can learn about the history of LGBTQ+ older adults and the unique forms of discrimination they face today, the better equipped advocates will be to prevent elder abuse or neglect. LGBTQ+ volunteers can play an important role in this protective work.
At Voyce, I observed what collaboration looked like from an interdisciplinary team of volunteers, interns, and staff members. VOYCE’s Policy Director connected with others in the aging and disability network and met regularly with advocates in Missouri’s Council on Aging to stay updated on legislative movement in the capitol and across the state. This network of organizations provided support and resources for individual family members, older adults, and those with disabilities.
This year, I have been serving as a Social Work Intern for SAGE, the country’s oldest and largest organization offering services and advocacy for LGBTQ+ older adults. Through SAGE’s collaboration with the NCEA, I had the opportunity to gather resources to create an LGBTQ+ Elder Justice toolkit for community members. This toolkit provides advocates with information on preventing elder abuse, as well as case studies, volunteer opportunities, and national and local elder justice resources.
Other opportunities to support LGBTQ+ older adults include:
- Connecting local aging providers with SAGECare credentialing program and other cultural competency training programs
- Connecting local long-term care facilities with the Long-Term Care Equality Index (LEI)
- Volunteering with your local Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program (LTCOP)
- Sharing suggestions on improving services for LGBTQ+ older adults during public hearings hosted by State Units on Aging and AAAs as they develop new plans on aging
- Partnering with LGBTQ+ community organizations to assist the Aging Network with outreach to LGBTQ+ older adults through co-hosted programming and joint-volunteer opportunities
- Getting involved with your local Aging Advisory Council (who are required to have representatives for LGBTQ+ older adults on their council)
- Exploring aging-related volunteer opportunities through AARP’s Age-Friendly Communities or community-led initiatives.
Honoring our LGBTQ+ older adults includes building supportive networks of protection to prevent discrimination, neglect, and abuse so all older adults can look forward to a future where they can thrive.
Last Modified: 05/13/2024