During this last week in the Life Course Scholars Program, I and some of my classmates worked on and presented a PowerPoint outlining our discussion of the book This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism by Ashton Applewhite. This book delves into various aspects of ageism, which results from the negative stereotypes of older people as portrayed by popular media and further perpetuated, in regards to her personal experiences, including her own hesitation on aging and how she overcame it (Applewhite). One aspect of the book that stood out to me was how the introduction connects ageism with sexism, as both of these stem from similar societal expectations of misrepresented groups (Applewhite). The commonalities between the two, as well as how ageist discrimination can be compounded by sexism, creates an intersectionality that affects the lives of a large population and should be considered. In addition, I conducted my interview for the oral history project with my mentor, Dr. Jack Fisher, who has given me plenty of advice for medical school over the years. At first, I was hesitant to do this interview, as while we are cordial with each other, we do not have more personal interactions beyond talking about academic activities. This is also in comparison to the well-done oral history projects up until now, which have portrayed a great amount of care between the two people. However, the interview went well, and I learned about Dr. Fisher’s roots in the UCSD medical program, which drew a sense of admiration from me. While I am nervous, I am more excited to talk about him to my fellow LCS members.
During our most recent class meeting, we had the opportunity to meet with representatives from Casa de Mañana in order to ask them questions or have them ask questions to us in a form of intergenerational exchange. In my group, the conversation naturally led to and primarily focused on the intergenerational rift within immigrant families, as most of the LCS members were of Asian or Pacific Islander descent and the seniors from Casa de Mañana were interested when the topic was brought up. When a question discussing the challenges that we have connecting with seniors was brought up, I responded by talking about how I have difficulty speaking in Vietnamese while my grandparents have difficulty understanding English. In addition, while I try my best to communicate otherwise, it makes any beyond-surface level questions difficult. In my group, other students responded similarly to the question, but the topic of culture was also brought up, with how in our cultures, people are typically expected to live with or look after their parents for longer than in the United States. To me, this creates a sort of internal cultural conflict, as I’ve grown up hearing from media and learning for myself the importance of independence, which is traditionally signified by one’s own home and other factors. However, upon growing up and learning about the senior experience in the US, especially for those with less money, I’ve realized the help that I could provide to my parents could make a large difference in the future. As I continue my education, I hope to resolve this in a way that would best allow me to help my parents. I’m grateful for the engaging conversation I had with those at Casa de Mañana, and I look forward to more interactions with seniors, especially with my mentor for the Oral History Project.
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Martin NguyenMartin is a Biochemistry/Cell Biology major from Garden Grove, CA. A fun fact about Martin is that he played tennis in high school. Archives
April 2021
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