skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Tuesday, April 29, 2025

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Mark Carney wins new term as Canada's Prime Minister on anti-Trump platform; Without key funding, Alabama faces new barriers to college access; MS could face steep postal privatization costs under Trump-Musk plan; New Hampshire's rail trails ensure accessibility for all.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Major shifts in environmental protections, immigration enforcement, civil rights as Trump administration reshapes government priorities. Rural residents and advocates for LGBTQ youth say they're worried about losing services.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Migration to rural America increased for the fourth year, technological gaps handicap rural hospitals and erode patient care, and doctors are needed to keep the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians healthy and align with spiritual principles.

Will Biden Presidency Change Age, Gender Stereotypes?

play audio
Play

Wednesday, December 30, 2020   

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - President-elect Joe Biden is 78-years old, and advocates for redefining retirement are encouraged by early signs that he could help overturn stereotypes faced by older people - including career women.

Biden already has nominated Janet Yellen, 74, for U.S. Treasury secretary and Linda Thomas-Greenfield, 68, as ambassador to the United Nations.

Karen Wagner, part of a duo that founded an online community called Lustre, said that when they left their careers as successful New York attorneys, they weren't prepared for changed perceptions.

"We loved our jobs, we loved what we were doing," she said. "Careers came to an end, and we were extremely startled to find that we fell off a cliff and became more or less invisible."

Wagner said women of all ages face challenges in the workplace - including equal pay, sexism and opportunity - but it's often far more difficult for older women. At age 60, U.S. Rep. Deb Haaland, D-N.M., has been nominated by Biden to lead the Interior Department. If confirmed, the congresswoman also will become the first Native American cabinet secretary in U.S. history.

Wagner noted Biden's groundbreaking decision to choose a woman - and a woman of color - as vice president, and said she's hopeful the team of Biden and Kamala Harris can help Americans understand that diversity brings strength and age represents decades of experience. She said "retirement" as a government policy was largely adopted by countries in the 20th century, when people lived far shorter lives.

"This is the first time that women will be both experienced and sentient at the same time," she said. "That combination is unprecedented, and should be of great value to employers of all kinds - both private sector and governmental, and nonprofit."

Wagner said women at 60 or 65 can live another three decades or more, and added that she believes retirement can leave many without a sense of purpose and sidelined by society.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A day before Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested, federal authorities apprehended a former New Mexico judge and his wife on charges related to harboring an undocumented immigrant. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Legal experts and advocates are outraged over the arrest of a Milwaukee judge last week who was charged with helping an undocumented defendant avoid a…


play sound

President Donald Trump and Elon Musk have proposed privatizing the United States Postal Service by selling it off to a corporation such as FedEx or UP…

Health and Wellness

play sound

By Brett Kelman for KFF Health News.Broadcast version by Freda Ross for Arkansas News Service reporting for the KFF Health News-Public News Service Co…


Advocates from Compassion & Choices attended a hearing for Senate Bill 403 before the State Senate Committee on Health on April 23. (Patricia Portillo/Compassion & Choices)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A bill to make medical aid in dying permanently legal in California goes before the state Senate Judiciary Committee today. The End of Life Option …

Environment

play sound

A major player in the Northwest's energy landscape is considering changes in the future, as extreme climate events make power delivery in Oregon more …

The Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River in Washington is the largest in the Bonneville Power Administration system. (Will/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

A major player in the Northwest's energy landscape is considering changes in the future as extreme climate events make power delivery in Washington mo…

Social Issues

play sound

On May 1, Oregon labor and immigrants' rights organizations are gathering in Salem calling for justice for immigrant workers and an end to mass …

Social Issues

play sound

LGBTQ+ advocates in South Dakota are reeling from passage of another state law they said harms their community. Now, there is concern possible …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021