The Older Americans' Pledge

We will not be judged by the values of youth.

We will not be expelled from work or play.

We will not equate aging with illness.

We will not be a subject matter for experts.

We will not be the objects of condescension or ridcule.

We will not be a social or economic problem.

We will not be trivialized.

We will not be docile.

We will not be interned.

We will treat our later decades as a unique stage of human development.

We will grow and learn.

We will integrate our social, our psychological and our spiritual lives.

We will take care of our own.

We will cooperate across generations to create a better world.

We will nurture and guide the young.

We will contribute according to our abilities.

We will withdraw our support from those who seek to diminish us.

We will be proud.

By Orrin R. Onken, 2001