Social Exclusion: A Lens for Understanding Aging in the Context of Migration

Migration is a relatively recent consideration in social gerontology, and migration studies often overlook aging (Torres, 2012). Despite the important presence of im/migrants^[1] across the country (StatsCan, 2017), relatively few studies have focused on aging and migration. Existing literature finds that older im/migrants experience health disparities (Gee et al. 2004; Kobayashi & Prus, 2012), structural racism and institutional discrimination (Ferrer et al. 2017; Sahraoui, 2020), and barriers in accessing care (Arora et al. 2018; Ciobanu & Hunter, 2017). Im/migrants also have higher rates of insecure employment and poverty than the Canadian-born population. It is safe to assume that this trend persists or even becomes more pronounced among aging im/migrants (Grenier, Phillipson, & Settersten, 2020). Aging is structured and experienced differently, and unequally, at the intersections of migration and aging. Discrepancies correspond with policy structures and institutional practices related to income, health, housing, and care.