A Minority-Feminist Perspective on Women and Aging

EAP Services to Older Adults in the Workplace

“…Women frequently have interrupted work histories, specifically for reasons of caring for family members, and hold either part-time and/or low-paying, low status jobs (Perkins, 1993b). The poorest category amongst all the older adult groups is African American women (Gould, 1989).…”

“…In 1991, the average yearly pension benefit for men over 65 was $7,059 compared to $3,647 for women (Leonard, 1994). African American older women, in general, receive lower Social Security benefits than white older women and are only half as likely as their white counterparts to receive a private pension (Gould, 1989;Perkins 1993a). The total monthly Social Security benefit for African American women age 65 to 69 in 1992 averaged $467.…”

The menopausal experience of African American women: Overview and suggestions for research

“…People from various regions of the world and within the United States, different social classes and income, as well as urban versus rural communities, each have particular circumstances which cannot be melded together into one generic picture. Comparing racial or ethnic groups with the traditionally studied Caucasian Americans tends to ignore the total female experience and not recognize that culture, ethnicity, race, class, and gender are central to a women's identity and destiny (Gould, 1989).…”

Social [In]security:

“…In 1987, the mean pension income for men over 65 was $649 a month compared to $394 for women (Social Security Bulletin, 1988). Black elderly women in general receive lower Social Security benefits than white older women and are only half as likely as their white counterparts to receive a private pension (Gould, 1989). The total monthly Social Security benefit for black women in 1988 averaged $369; for white women it was $442 (Social Security Bulletin, 1989).…”

“…Marital status impacts the financial condition of every women, and necessarily impacts on the type of housing that each can afford. Black women are more likely than white women to have never-married, or if manied, to be separated or divorced, and then have a greater likelihood of being widowed (Brown, 1988;Gould, 1989). Both white and black older women face problems with housing.…”