“Project LATER: Raising Awareness for Vulnerable LGBTI Elders in the Netherlands”

LGBTI elderly people in the Netherlands often have to deal with vulnerability and invisibility. (Photo: Pixabay)

LGBTI elderly people in the Netherlands often have to deal with vulnerability and invisibility. LATER is a project that focuses on these rainbow elders and helps them to become more visible and less vulnerable. LATER because regional symposia and activities, a traveling photo exhibition and a documentary. Under the leadership of Sebastiaan Kes and Maaike Kluit, this problem is being denounced, and more importantly, a solution is being worked on.

In the Netherlands there are an estimated 250,000 LGBTI elderly over the age of 65. The LGBTI community has a long history of discrimination and oppression, and this has also affected the older generation. Many rainbow elders have kept their sexuality and/or gender identity hidden for years for fear of rejection and violence. This has led to a feeling of isolation and a lack of social support.

Freedom
It is precisely this group who fought hard for the freedom that is now taken for granted. The problem also has to do with the environment that has a blind spot for this vulnerable group. Too many people in healthcare have prejudices about the sexual orientation of their patients, according to Kes: “We hear stories from elderly people who, out of fear, do not dare to be honest about the fact that they are married to someone of the same sex. Soon an older gentleman is asked about his wife, which is therefore a prejudice. For fear of being treated differently, they do not dare to say in such a situation that they are actually married to a man. At a later age, they actually go back into the closet.”

Kluit would like to emphasize that it is not always about intense situations such as bullying, because that would be part of the awareness. “It is not always the case that the elderly are verbally or physically harassed, it is really in the small things. We have also heard stories in which the cases are serious, but it is mainly between the nose and lips.”

The LATER project wants to recognize the history of the rainbow elders and therefore give them a voice. By means of symposia and activities, the aim is to create awareness among everyone who comes into contact with elderly people who are in need of help. In this way, more space must be made for this group to show and tell honestly who they really are.

The symposium LATER will be held on May 23 from 1 pm in Scheltema Leiden. Admission is free and you can register via the organization’s website.

Sebastiaan Kes and Maaike Kluit at the Evening with Robbert about the LATER project.

Leiden Society