Gerontocracy and Older People’s Rights: A Conversation with Samuel Moyn and Bethany Brown

Oct. 31, 2024
4:10PM - 5:00PM
SLB Room 128
Open to the YLS Community Only

Older persons occupy a unique position in U.S. politics and society as both a highly empowered age group (our last two presidents were both over 70 at the beginning of their first terms), and a particularly vulnerable group when it comes to financial exploitation and age-related discrimination. Through both a domestic and international lens, this event will seek a balance between two imperatives: addressing gerontocracy and ensuring the protection of older people's rights.

Our distinguished speakers include:

· Samuel Moyn, Kent Professor of Law and History at Yale Law School: Professor Moyn will speak to us about his New York Times op-ed “America’s Gerontocracy Problem” and his ongoing study of the harmful effects of older people’s monopolization of positions of power in US government and society.  

· Bethany Brown, Global Advocacy Director, AARP International: Bethany Brown is an advocate for older persons in the United States and abroad and has worked extensively on protecting elder rights not only at AARP, but also at the UN, Human Rights Watch, and various advocacy organizations. She will provide an elder rights perspective to this conversation.

· Claudia Flores, Clinical Professor of Law, Director of the Lowenstein Clinic, and Director of the Schell Center for International Human Rights: Professor Flores, an experienced legal practitioner and professor of international human rights, will moderate this conversation.

Join us for this nuanced conversation on the position of older people’s rights in the U.S. and abroad.

Sponsoring Organization(s)

Schell Center for International Human Rights