West Hollywood resident Barbara Meltzer, who serves on the American Society on Aging’s Ageism and Culture Advisory Council, has annonced that the ASA will celebrate Ageism Awareness Day on Oct. 7.

Modeled after the United Nation’s International Day of Older Persons, Ageism Awareness Day provides an opportunity to draw attention to the existence and impact of ageism in our society. “Aging is not a problem,” ASA president/CEO Peter Kaldes said. “Ageism is. And because of this, we are determined to explore cultural views on aging and portrayals of aging at the individual, community and national levels. We want to reframe how we talk about aging as the natural process of life, shift representations of aging often portrayed in the media as being a period of decline and promote representation of older adults in the arts as the experienced and unique individuals they are, engaged with the wellbeing of their families, communities and the world.

According to ASA, ageism is widespread in society and can be found in workplaces and health systems to stereotypes seen on TV, advertising and in the media.

“The American Society on Aging is reaching out to our members and allies to raise awareness about ageism and to put an end to what aging expert Ashton Applewhite describes as a ‘prejudice against our future self,’” Kaldes said.

The American Society on Aging unites, empowers and champions everyone striving to improve aging. Since 1954, ASA has developed and led the largest, most diverse community of professionals working in aging in America. As a result, ASA has become the go-to source to cultivate leadership, advance knowledge and strengthen the skills of our members and others who work with and on behalf of older adults.

For information about ASA, visit asaging.org.