What happens to a community with a plurality minority population such as seniors older than 55? That community and that group often feels neglected.
What is a plurality minority population? I see it as a community where one minority demographic group is larger than any other demographic.
How does our community come by that perception? In general, government agencies seem to treat us like a mine rather than a farm. Farmers conserve resources for future use; miners exploit resources, often without regard to environmental remediation. To further clarify, compare seafood farming to seafood exploitation, or timber farming to clear cut lumber production.
The perception of neglect arises from a historical shift in the community’s dynamics. It happened gradually beginning at the middle of last century, when, after many decades as a rail center with a large and growing population, the steam era ended. The Normal School at the top of Maple Street expanded onto the hill above it and eventually became the State University College at Oneonta and then SUNY Oneonta. The city evolved from a railroad “company town” to a college and health services economy.
The backdrop to all of this was the development of strip malls just outside the city. Then, just as our downtown merchants were rebounding from the business lost to the strip malls, came the e-commerce era — what I call couch potato shopping — then the pandemic. When it seemed things couldn’t get worse, our county fathers removed the DMV from the population center of Otsego County.
As we were attempting to rebound from all of that, we began experiencing locally the effects of a nationwide homeless crisis. The agencies that we depend on to see us through these situations could not foresee these crises. They may not have responded well to them, but they are not intentionally making life difficult for us.
Contrast our history — a growing population during the rail and normal school era; well paid, young households that could afford to be generous — to our present situation, an aging population at about half of our peak size, many living on Social Security. The distribution of services from the state and county did not evolve as we may have wished, but let’s be real about this. Though they didn’t set out to fail our city, it is now incumbent upon us, the wise elders, to demand that they come to our aid.
How is the state of New York spending the proceeds of that opiate reparation money? I can’t answer that, but it doesn’t appear to benefit enough of the victims of this particular epidemic.
The elderly can’t shoulder the burden alone. It requires uniting all community members and generations around an equitable, sustainable vision for the future.
We must defend and improve our condition with transformational advocacy that demands more investment, resources, and respect from the county and state. Push back against rigidity and oppressive fear. Be driven by desire. Build local political power for our demographic.
Work with local organizations like CANO and the Greater Oneonta Historical Society to actuate community events and spaces that break down generational barriers and bring youth, elders and the entire community together, finding common ground.
At the same time, we must attract not only young, well-paid families but also the well-paying jobs they need. As part of that effort, we must encourage young family people to take leadership roles in government and civic organizations.
Make our homes and neighborhoods safe by providing shelter while seeking equity, redemption and renewal for those facing housing challenges. Call or text City Hall and volunteer if you want to deal with this issue.
Finally, be sure that our leaders are asking the right question. We will only arrive at sustainable solutions by beginning with the end in mind and asking the right questions.