Aging Gays

"In June, the queer community will celebrate the 40th anniversary of Stonewall. Along with that celebration comes the reality that many who were on the front lines of the queer civil-rights movement are now on a different front line as the first generation of out elderly queers.In 2009, some of the best-known voices of the queer community are that entity that truly dares not speak its name: old.Martin Duberman, author of “Stonewall” and one of the foremost queer historians, turns 79 in August. Katherine V. Forrest, writer and head of the Lambda Literary Foundation, will be 70 in September. Adrienne Rich, one of the nation’s most lauded poets — and a lesbian — has her 80th birthday on May 16. U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) is 69. David Mixner, who spearheaded gay-rights issues under the Clinton administration, is 63. Comedian Kate Clinton is 62.According to the National Lesbian and Gay Task Force, concomitant with the overall aging of the Baby Boomer generation (those born between 1945-62), there are currently 3 million elder LGBT people in the U.S. NLGTF estimates that within 20 years, that number will double.With its emphasis on perpetual youthfulness, the realities of aging in the LGBT community have long been ignored. Older LGBT people have found themselves increasingly marginalized within their own community, where programs and meeting places for people over 50 are scarce to non-existent."
This is part of a great article on (PGN) an eye opening read.