Hidden Women - Exploring older women’s experiences of housing insecurity
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- Опубликовано: 19 авг 2024
- #HiddenWomen - Exploring older women’s experiences of housing insecurity
Single older women comprise a rapidly growing cohort of those experiencing housing insecurity and homelessness in Canberra.
Following a life-time of work and caring responsibilities, often characterised by inequalities around wages and superannuation, older women today make up the majority of people accessing local housing support services. Women who fall into homelessness or experience housing insecurity later in life, are not a homogenous group and their circumstances are complex and varied.
Hidden Women is a short documentary film highlighting the experiences of older women in housing and the confluence of gaps in policy and service delivery that have exacerbated the situation. Crucially, Hidden Women puts an everyday face on housing insecurity amongst older women.
YWCA Canberra has a history of providing housing support to Canberrans through our transitional housing, affordable housing and supportive tenancy services and we are proud to share some of our clients’ stories. Hidden Women was developed with the support of the ACT Government through the Participation Grants Program (Office of Veterans and Seniors).
At 70 and in failing health, this is my worst nightmare.
What's wrong with you ?
I’m very fortunate that my daughter and son-in-law help me financially. My rent is my whole SSA check. In return I help take care of my four young grandkids, which is more than a full time job but one I gratefully enjoy. I’m still healthy and young enough that I can do this at 70yo. Without this support, I would certainly be homeless.
Same here in US. 😪 This is why people love the show "The Golden Girls". Living somewhat communely but with independence. But that's sadly difficult to find. Everyone wants to feel they can still control their own destiny and daily choices.
Yes, the advantages are enormous, but so are the disadvantages.
I tried to get at least two of my gal pals to consider co-housing, and they preferred their independence, even if it was in poverty.
Finding the right people would be the challenge. I am pretty easy-going which can work against me with people that are too domineering.
@@paul2019monte.... yeah I've met some women like that. I'd like a normal down to earth girl buddy (oldie). There's a ton of jealousy in the world now though. Some women would want to bring men in though. My sister tried to get me to move in with her but she's jealous and her nature is unfortunate.
@@earnold1896 yes. Don't fall for that one.
Same in the US. Covid is also putting the vulnerable into debt. I have not worked since March of last year, now with both shots I face a job market as a 63 year old.
Humanity is taking self out if center and knowing others are suffering and want comfort same as your mind and body Crave. Until.this is universal evolved altruism Mind consciousness
.Live with the yin yang and its
Song of suffering and teachings avilable to help navigate the chaos.
I live in America. I am scared to death of being homeless when I get older. The odds are against me now. I am 60 years old, and I am low income, I am a single woman, and I have no family at all.
🤗
Me too
I’m currently this now in Ireland .I’m lucky I have one uncle as my family but he doesn’t have his own place . With rising rents and still saving for a house , saving 4 years now , the rents won’t stop rising so now only option working class people have is homeless housing ! I’m now search lodge houses or large 2/3 bed moblie homes so I have a fully paid roof over my head !
I'm sorry to hear that, please pray 🙏 Because you have a Heavenly Father and a Heavenly family. Your Heavenly Father can provide and protect you you just have to express your need for Him 😍
@@rustykatt3870 What the fuckin that emoji?
These are healthy women, imagine how much harder it is for those with bad health problems!
Give everyone a UBI.
I'm 66 and can't hardly walk anymore.But I'm still working.some day's I don't think I can finish the day.I have to work
I find it really distasteful for the sacrifices made and the systems and some family members toss a human being aside like trash.🌻
I could NEVER turn my back on family ! Never ! Especially if they are facing homelessness ..little alone my mom ! Shame on those people . So heartbreaking for these ladies to experience that
You never know the background story.
The family will have to answer to God.
I got kicked out of my brothers house by his wife and he did nothing
@@dm-jf5uu You must have deserved it
This is / has been happening to us older women & men WORLDWIDE since years at least decades. I started to notice this in the seventies while at Grammar school in NZ later an increase in the EU around the nineties until today. Solution Self sustaining affordable tiny house communities of varying ages, social creative educational group travel opportunities. And of course a living wage / pension.
This is why my partner and I moved to northern Spain. We own our home now - no mortgage - and we work online from home. That supports us pretty well. And now we have savings form our house sale in Aus. which we didn't have to fall back on before. We saw a bleak future, with a mortgage and scrabbling for full-time employment in order to sustain it. one serious illness and we'd have been screwed, so we took action while we were able.
I understand slightly but don't know how anyone can go to Spain when there is such cruelty to bulls.
@@earnold1896 Every country is cruel to their animals, especially those animals intended to be eaten. Australia exports live animals, sends them on a boat to be brutally slaughtered by islamisists in foreign countries.
Good for y'all. Happy for you
I'm almost independent ! But scared that my Family might cuss me out for proving it and trying to do things on my own. I still feel threatened by my own Family !
Meeetooo.. I’m 50schooling for nurse. I’m so excited adventures ahead!
Are they going to take care of you?
The problem people face when asking for help is that there are so many others seeking help at the same time and not enough resources (funding, houses, availability of services in regional areas, huge waiting lists...) Sadly, you are not a high enough priority for housing commission if you are single and don't have dependent children.
Try being single and male.
@@jonahtwhale1779 Sadly that's true, single men have it way harder than single women, even more so if they identify as a minority.
@@Kelly-oe8kr That is TOTAL BS
Agreed. And before their bodies and minds are used up. There is a need of Elder females wisdom, friendship, and teaching... It is a terrible shame that these women have been put through so much and that usually if they are able to find a suitable arrangement, it either costs too much or is taken.
Women should be assured of the same level of pension funds as men, this is essential, otherwise it is an elemental discrimination with all the hardships, the time has come for all citizens to be afforded the security of income and housing .
As long as women do the same level of work as men that seems eminently fair. Unfortunately all too many of them want to stop performing paid work and have somebody else stump up the funds to support their lifestyle. Equality of work as well as equal pay.
@@jonahtwhale1779 Your remark suggests that you are living in the back of some dark, windowless man cave, where you are blind to the work that women do, and, therefore, you are unwilling to value it properly.
@@jonahtwhale1779 What about all of the backbreaking unpayed work mothers do? That's more than a full-time job, but offers no 'benefits', so to speak. I rarely see a man pitching in for that work.
Edit: punctuation
@@SusanWashington11 You shared my exact sentiment, only you put it far more eloquently. Thank you for sharing.
People have to depend on themselves. It's the only way to make it and have less stress.
After growing up in an abusive household owning my own home was my one goal in life. It was a struggle but I own my own home. An adequate pension is also necessary. Do whatever you can to get it.
Older women should gather and buy farm together
Move to a less expensive country.
Sharing is a good thing
We have a thrift store that says Goodwill well Goodwill would be basic income to pay for shelter utilities food and clothing a safety net for all those in the United States that's what we need then there will be less prisons especially for the disabled who can't work but also for those who are working but living in shelters they need help they don't need to be judged
I call us "faded flowers". Here in the U.S. I live in govt housing... but it 4 1/2 years on the waiting list. Now I'm saving every penny to buy a piece of land and put a mobile home on it. It seems like it's the only way to feel secure in my housing.
I understand the problem laid out here. I would have been interested to see suggestions on just what the solutions might be
Like most problems it has multiple causes. The first and most obvious solution is to introduce equal pay and superannuation rates across the genders. It is profoundly unfair that single women who must support themselves alone are actually paid a lower salary for the same job as a man - quite often working for the same employer.
@@helenaville5939 This definitely creates disparity in what a woman gets both in salary and then social security. And the assets that they can build up.
Equal pay for equal work has been law for decades. The famous wage gap is caused by women making different choices to men in the workforce. For example many women choose to work fewer hours than men do.
Over 60% of social security spending goes to wonen. Only 40% to men. Men pay 70% of tax revenue. Men pay more, get l ess back. How are women dusadvantaged by this inequality in their favour?
To share is my worst nightmare.
I agree. I live alone by choice and my home is my refuge from the world. I gave a friend a room for a month to help him out and my electricity and water use went through the roof and he didn't pay anything and walked away with a 'thanks for the room and see you later.' Never again.
@@10AntsTapDancing i have had roommates in the past and never has it worked. Yes they want to live for free their car broke or lost job. I would rather be broke paying my own rent than letting someone live here who is just going to use me. With the new roommate laws anybody can refuse to leave, it take a legal eviction. I do not want someone in my face all day. My home my castle. Safe
@@keezjordan1619 YEP,......I would downsize seriously before I let anyone move in..
@@Angel-nu7fm I have had roomys in the past never worked! 5 yrs ago I thought about it again but everyone who contacted me was on disability and stay at home all day! NO WAY am I going to be hard at work and you play at home with my stuff. No no no
I have been divorced 20 years I have no desire to move anybody in I like my alone time
Never live with any partner unless you are married to them
How can kids abandon their parents ?? I really can't wrap my head around it .. strange western culture ..
You are right. It is shameful behavior on the part of children who can and should do right by their parents. The guilt would, literally, kill me if did something this selfish.
@@asafaust8869 It's beyond selfish actually. In Asian cultures grandparents are the core of the family. Entire family revolves around them. We treat them with Royal respect.
And if you don’t have children and no family left?
You don't know half of it. I was out on the streets for a year. In the 13th month I caught pneumonia and was taken to the hospital. The doctor called each of my four kids to see which would help. All were adults. Doctor said I was dying. The son who lived 15 minutes away wouldn't even come. Previously I had spent my nites sleeping in an all night coffee shop. My other son passed right by the table where I was, he ordered food and ignored me
I signed up for an online dating site. I felt fear, terror because I needed somebody there for me as I was out on the street I wasn't looking for a sexual relationship, just security. After a year of answering texts, I agreed to meet an older man over coffee. Best thing I ever did. He turned out to be just what I needed. His wife had been killed in an accident, he had lost his business and suffered panic attacks from the stress of it all. He was also struggling financially. He had an extra room in his apartment so I moved in with him. Long story short, in the abscence of family or friends, we have become each others' best friends. He is always there for me as I am there for him.
This is so sad. What are the reasons for this?
Greed. Younger relatives do not want to be bothered. They will pound their chest for right to life, but will not visit Granny in assisted living because she was mean, will not invite Auntie because she goes on the porch and smokes.
These women expected others to provide for them and their lifestyle. They are not alone in this expectation.
@@jonahtwhale1779 Women who were born and raised in the 1940s and 1950s came of age in a very different society during which gender roles and expectations were firmly established, and career opportunities for women were very limited. In addition, at least in the USA, income disparities between working men and women favored men - with the assumption being that men would be the family providers and therefore needed higher compensation. Even when I was a young woman in the 1980s, I had a boss who clearly felt justified in paying his male employees more. He was very open about it. This has affected the wealth of older women relative to men...especially single or divorced women. Also women tend to live longer, though the life expectancy gap has shrunk, which means their wealth must last longer. I am sure there are also older men who are similarly vulnerable and would hope similar opportunities for accommodation are made available to them in Australia ( and everywhere).. This isn't a competition between the genders. This is a matter of actuary data. 😳
Husband's, no life insurance, pensions, savings, equity, house?
Wow what a Country .
2:14 why didn't her kids offer her a place to stay
do not love her enough to sacrifice
@@jessiejoseph1093 one never knows their side of the story. Easy to say that without knowing.
Some people can difficult.
For example they maintain few friendships and expect roommates to act as constant companions.
I notice it happen even when their relatives remind them to find new friends.
It's probably because she can and should get a job and support herself. She's a grown woman.
Their parents raised them from birth how could their kids abandon them when homeless
Older women deserve help. Their generation stayed home and took care of their husband and kids.
Younger women for the last 50 years have insisted men are dirt and they don’t need them. They can sleep in the street.
Same here in UK
It's a viscous cycle.we're living longer.younger families don't seem to be able to take Nana into their homes.some Nana's want to live on their own.the elderly get thrown on the dump heap.with so much to offer and teach the younger generation.only couple generations ago,Nana or pop, if single,family would take them in.its what we get for having children, in and out of the work force,working casual.
All of the tiny, white text in that video is not legible on a smart phone. Something to consider, particularly since this video is probably of greatest interest to older people, who r, as we well know, likely to have diminished visual acuity.
There may come a time when I’ll look for a roomie to share my house. (Currently married).
Sounds like you're thinking of not being married anymore, Mary? 😏
sue hendren No. I think I won’t be able to afford to live alone if my husband passes before me.
@@maryrudelich9000 I understand. Living alone is expensive. Just be sure you spend a lot of time considering who you might want to have live with you. And set down the parameters to start. The wrong person is more expensive than being alone trust me💜 I hope you don't have to worry about this for a long time.
I've been divorced 20 years and I hope to never have to share my home with anyone I like my quiet time
"Golden Girls" sharing an house. This concept hasn't gained the citizenship with the seniors. I tried to initiate it in Sydney once. I found out the Aussie oldies were all selfish, not willing to coharmonise with the sharers. Everything is me,me, me. Not just the younger Aussies bad trait.
The Golden Girls was predicted programming. We all slept. That was the agenda what got pushed and we see the results today. All shows ,movies, songs too, just pushing agendas.
We need to set up something where single seniors can share a place. You won’t be alone. You’ll have a roof over your head and friends to talk to. That’s what I would do
where are this ladies now? feedback?
About u family cussing u out it is like u topo the words out of mouth the same thing is going on I'm my life.
Only the strong survive.
I didn't have children and was constantly told I'd end up alone in my old age. Glad I didn't listen to that BS. because why aren't the children of these women helping them? I worked hard and made sure that now I'm retired I have my own home and no debt. Tired of hearing the lie of gender pay gap because I did it on minimum wage. Yes women with kids can't easily earn much while caring for a family but in reality that's a small part of your life. The choices you make give you the life you get. The general air of 'poor poor pitiful me' annoyed me a lot.
How does your work experience make a lie out of the gender pay gap, especially when you earned minimum wage ( according to you).? It seems to make the point rather than refute it. And raising children is not a small part of life..it accounts for at least 25 prime working years in cases of families with at least two kids. Don't get defensive because I too did not have children. I don't disagree with you that people make bad choices. What we need ( at least in the USA ) is financial education. Many people are surprisingly uninformed about money matters. I've lived frugally and save as much as I can for retirement, but I will still likely have an austere retirement ( when I do retire in 7 or 8 years). Yes I've made career mistakes but I've never lived beyond my means. I haven't purchased a new car in 25 years and yes, I own my home too and have no debt to speak of....
Not married with kids, they make it sound terrible that you'll end up alone with no one to take care of you in your old age. It's a blessing if they do but don't count on others to take care of you.
It's a way they was raised
No
Australia 🇦🇺 🪃 the lucky country you can't find rentals even if you have a job housing shortage to buy average home costs around 1 million dollars, rentals have sky rocketed part of the great reset you will have nothing but you will be happy buy a good tent ⛺ and brush up on your camping skills the world 🌎 is going backwards !
That is why one have to watch this and stay on top of a woman games look on for no one in order to survive
The American dream
Tough go deal with !
Shameful
Hmmm, my mom was a traditional mom.. stayed home raised 8 kids. After we were hitting middle school she went back to work. Same with me.. I was a single mom... When my daughter started middle school I went back to work. Now she is out of college so I'm working full time. I wonder why the younger woman is having trouble.. her kids are grown . She can work and get a cheap apartment just like I did. I worked cleaning a Catholic school.. I didn't get paid alot. But I got an in-law apartment for $500 a month. I couldn't afford cable. But I had my little nest. I used to draw or watch DVDs..
Rents are very expensive nowadays while salary and wages are low
This is sad, and no doubt an upcoming problem. However, they do currently have places to live. Yet 3 out of 4 homeless people are men, not possibly one day, right now... today.
Also glad one of them mentioned she went to a women's refuge. That's great, glad that's an option for her. How many male refuge are there compared to women?
Again, not saying this isn't a problem or it shouldn't be addressed, just saying these are facts to that have been over looked. How about instead, look at the whole issue with both genders? Instead of making it seem like it's only an issue for one.
Weren't you listening to their words? "Men can look after themselves" ( and have to pay for women to be looked after too). Women are 'more vulnerable' and can't be expected to bear the costs of their own lifestyle- I guess because they are so stunning and brave!
Now try to imagine the male version of this program? No men on comfortable sofas, drinking coffee complaining how unhappy they were with their current accommodation. They would be sitting in a dingy back alley, with a rain sodden cardboard box for shelter wondering if they will survive the next freezing night! Yes women truly are the oppressed class in society!
Are there no accommodations for older homeless men in Australia? 😳
80% of those sleeping on the streets are male. Women don't seem to mind being underrepresented in those who sleep in shop door ways or the alleys.
Obviously not enough to address the need. Women are given the priority in social housing, as in so many other areas. Men's suffering is the real area of invisibility.
Jonah are you feeling oppressed??? How about ,I, a woman,tell you what you're ALLOWED to do with your body? Or I make sure when you find work,you get paid 20 % less???? That's reality for WOMEN.
No man tells a woman what she can do with her body. If ypu are unhappy with ypur employment - Try getting a job in an industry created and built by women. Good luck there are almost none.
global problem! overpopulation and we live toooooo long! both parents in a carehouse 4000 euros a month
As unpopular as it is, what actions of theirs contributed? I had a 60 year old want to rent a room from me. Spent her life flitting from job to job, town to town, 5K in savings and was planning a 3-4k trip. No way. BTW, I wasn't in the market for a roommate. She came over for lunch and decided she liked my house.
Okay. She dropped major hints. Her thoughts like "How lovely the neighborhood is." or "My friend has so much space." 👀
She might end up wrecking your life and house. If she can't hold it together on her own, they tend to pull others down with them
@@lenac3587 Exactly. Even tried to tell me she was "good with money. Asked me if she could afford the 3-4k trip, with 5k to her name.....unreal.
Stop judging so much people! She chose the way she wanted to live, you chose yours. She can ask to live with you, you can say no! Live and let live.
@@shirleylangton7967 Shirley, the workers end up paying for the slackers one way or another. THAT is not ok
Where are the homeless women living on the streets and shop fronts? None of these women have nowhere to live. Listen to the words of these women. At every stage someone else is responsible for providing them with housing - husband, family, friends, government, charity - never themselves!
Yes! I agree. It's your responsibility to take care of me. Feed and house me. I can't stand it. Get a job... Get two.. like I did. You work your butt off and then you can support yourself. These people don't seem like they know the simple dinamic of taking care of themselves.
@@robinjohnson717 77
Your comments are harsh disrespectful. And evil. What the hell.is up to.males and females who say these things in the face of suffering.
Why should I have any respect for these women? Have they done something worthy of being respected? What is more morally reprehensible - criticising women who have a roof over their head or neglecting those who don't? When the number of women on the streets is larger than the number of men, only then should women's homelessness be given any priority over men's homelessness.
That's how older women were brought up in their day. Younger women have been used to a more independent life
This crappy modern days Feminism and idea of telling women they can be independent, waste their youth and value which is given to them by nature, on travel, having fun etc and not to built a family, rather to always expect the man to treat her like some "princess" and when that wears out she dumps the man and becomes single mum, still ingorant to what problem she created, which eventually comes down to this... no more value in the woman as she is now old and no longer pretty, and the woman has ruined her life by dumping the very man she was supposed to build a future with, help him out etc. This is long term effects of Feminism, which was originally only meant to level the playing ground but instead has shifted the issue other way around... pushing the man down and elevating the women... women these days are full of themselves, they think they are worth more than what they real worth is, they disrespect the man, they waste their youth, they are now only riding that carousel from one man to another.... and all of that also sends completely wrong message to their kids, esp girls.
You are very depressing.
@@lindabell7037 its called the truth, feel free to go back to your fantasy land to feel better.
They were busy baking cookies