Sue Westwood: Ageing, Gender and Society: Equality in Late Life

The idea of sexual behaviour in later life has received little attention until fairly recently. Perhaps this was because it was just assumed old people do not have sex. There has, however, been a growth of sociological literature on the subject. Sue Westwood’s excellent new book looks at older lesbian gay and bisexual people who have themselves been overlooked in the recent discussion.

The current cohort of older LGBT people have lived through fascinating times and seen the legal and social response to their relationships transform from sinful and criminal; to acceptance and formal recognition. It makes it particularly important to listen to LGBT older people. Not only because they have a fascinating story to tell, but because their current position involves the intersection of discrimination caused by sexism, gender, age and sexuality.