LGBT people who fought the earliest battles for equality now face so much fear about discrimination, or worse, in health care/long-term care that they hide their past lives, are afraid to ask for help, and die earlier. But, a small group of professionals is trying to change that.—Anonymous
Gen Silent asks six LGBT seniors if they will hide their lives to survive.They put a face on what experts in the film call an epidemic: gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender seniors so afraid of discrimination, or worse, inlong-term/health care that many go back into the closet. And, theirdecisions are captured through intimate access to their day-to-day lives overthe course of a year in Boston, Massachusetts. Gen Silent discovers how oppression in the years before Stonewall now leaves many elders not justafraid but dangerously isolated. Many of our greatest generation are dyingprematurely because they dont ask for help and have too few people in theirlives to keep an eye on them.The film shows the wide range in quality of paid caregivers --from those who arespecifically trained to make LGBT seniors feel safe, to the other end of thespectrum, where LGBT elders face discrimination, neglect or abuse. As the film chronicles the challenges that these men and women face,each subject crosses paths with a small but growing group of impassioned professionals trying to wake up the long-term and healthcare industries to their plight.
