People are turning 60, 70, 80, and 90 all over the place these days. In fact, there’s nothing newsworthy about making it to 100 anymore—nothing new about getting old.

If you’re like me, you’ve noticed in recent years that our youth-oriented society generally regards its elders with disdain, ridicule, and abuse—verbal or otherwise. While it’s getting easier to be green these days, being gray has had it tough. We’ve been accused of being outmoded, outwitted, over-the-hill, in the way, out of our minds, impotent, unproductive, an enormous drag on the economy and the primary factor in the coming bankruptcy of the Social Security system. It’s enough to make you wonder if everyone in the country, including your loved ones, sees you more valuable to them dead than alive. As politically correct as our nation has become in condemning perceived and real biases against race, religion, gender identity, and national origin, ridiculing people based on age seems downright acceptable and justified. Is there no one out there under 50 who understand that one day they will too be in our shoes? And who will be there to defend them? 

But hold on. Help is on the way! With 78 million Boomers poised to join the growing ranks of people over 60, most of whom are not willing to be relegated to a retirement home, a big shakeup is in the making as they raise their voices in protest, and demand to be heard.