Changes

{{quotation|Ageism can look like fans who show up in the comments of the writers’ room Twitter and Instagram when they post pictures of the adults to say “nobody cares about them, post [whoever I personally stan the most] instead.” ...

{{quotation|Ageism can look like fans who show up in the comments of the writers’ room Twitter and Instagram when they post pictures of the adults to say “nobody cares about them, post [whoever I personally stan the most] instead.” ...

Ageism can look like a blanket refusal, under in any situation where Clarke and Abby are at odds, to grant that Abby might have a point, even when the narrative is clearly telling us that Clarke is the character at fault. The tendency within this fandom for young girls who closely identify with Clarke to graft their own mom frustrations onto Abby is virtually never-ending, and it can be hard to sift through the the complex intersection of ageism and misogyny that makes it impossible for them not to see mothers as human beings who are interesting, who are wise, who are right, who know things their children do not, who are sexual, who are allowed to make mistakes, who deserve screen time and plot agency, who are just as vital to the story as the teenagers...

Ageism can look like a blanket refusal, under in any situation where [[Clarke Griffin|Clarke]] and Abby are at odds, to grant that Abby might have a point, even when the narrative is clearly telling us that Clarke is the character at fault. The tendency within this fandom for young girls who closely identify with Clarke to graft their own mom frustrations onto Abby is virtually never-ending, and it can be hard to sift through the the complex intersection of ageism and misogyny that makes it impossible for them not to see mothers as human beings who are interesting, who are wise, who are right, who know things their children do not, who are sexual, who are allowed to make mistakes, who deserve screen time and plot agency, who are just as vital to the story as the teenagers...

Ageism can look like a fan who ships all the non-canon ships … except Doctor Mechanic, because it’s “gross” and “Abby is basically her mom.”  The inherent desexualization of age-difference relationships is often rooted in ageism.  You don’t have to ship it!  But if you insist that no one should ship it, then there may be some ageism in the roots of your ship-shaming.<ref name=abby>{{cite web | url = http://kane-and-griffin.tumblr.com/post/164960658961/hey-so-i-know-that-youre-the-most-famous-person | title = I have a lot of thoughts, some of which may not be the thoughts you were hoping that I would have|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20181204102956/http://kane-and-griffin.tumblr.com/post/164960658961/hey-so-i-know-that-youre-the-most-famous-person|archivedate=2018-12-04 }}</ref>}}

Ageism can look like a fan who ships all the non-canon ships … except Doctor Mechanic, because it’s “gross” and “Abby is basically her mom.”  The inherent desexualization of age-difference relationships is often rooted in ageism.  You don’t have to ship it!  But if you insist that no one should ship it, then there may be some ageism in the roots of your ship-shaming.<ref name=abby>{{cite web | url = http://kane-and-griffin.tumblr.com/post/164960658961/hey-so-i-know-that-youre-the-most-famous-person | title = I have a lot of thoughts, some of which may not be the thoughts you were hoping that I would have|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20181204102956/http://kane-and-griffin.tumblr.com/post/164960658961/hey-so-i-know-that-youre-the-most-famous-person|archivedate=2018-12-04 }}</ref>}}

Accusations of ageism is also often associated with [[The Walking Dead]] fandom's treatment of the character [[Carol Peletier]],<ref>{{cite web | url = http://carolageismandsexismposts.tumblr.com/ | title = CAROL HATE: AGEISM, SEXISM, VICTIM-BLAMING|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20181204030747/http://carolageismandsexismposts.tumblr.com/|archivedate=2018-12-04 }}</ref> forum user Doctor grimes summarizes:

Accusations of ageism is also often associated with [[The Walking Dead]] fandom's treatment of the character [[Carol Peletier]],<ref>{{cite web | url = http://carolageismandsexismposts.tumblr.com/ | title = CAROL HATE: AGEISM, SEXISM, VICTIM-BLAMING|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20181204030747/http://carolageismandsexismposts.tumblr.com/|archivedate=2018-12-04 }}</ref> forum user Doctor grimes summarizes:

{{quotation2|ageism is at play in some parts of this fandom. I've certainly seen my fair share of some people lobbing ageist remarks about Melissa McBride/Carol. From diminishing her capabilities solely on the basis of her age, to the fact that she's "too old" to play opposite male characters like Daryl or Rick in a romance. She's been referred to as a "mother" figure to men closer to her own age than the age of her canonical on-screen child (Sophia) -- men that she couldn't possibly have birthed.  

{{quotation2|ageism is at play in some parts of this fandom. I've certainly seen my fair share of some people lobbing ageist remarks about Melissa McBride/[[Carol Peletier|Carol]]. From diminishing her capabilities solely on the basis of her age, to the fact that she's "too old" to play opposite male characters like [[Daryl Dixon|Daryl]] or [[Rick Grimes|Rick]] in a romance. She's been referred to as a "mother" figure to men closer to her own age than the age of her canonical on-screen child (Sophia) -- men that she couldn't possibly have birthed.  

I do believe this is a result of societal conditioning. We've been shown consistently older men still being sexy and suave and roping younger women (sometimes half their age), while older women get shoved into the margins. To play mothers to younger starring characters, grandmothers, or minor supporting roles. They're rarely given the chance to be shown doing anything active -- let alone driving a plot.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://spoilthedead.com/forum/showthread.php/22188-Women-and-Ageism-on-TWD/page4 | title = Fan, Doctor Grimes. Women and Ageism on TWD, posted December 24, 2015 on spoilthedead.com/forum|archiveurl=http://archive.fo/hfgy6|archivedate=2019-02-21 }}</ref>}}

I do believe this is a result of societal conditioning. We've been shown consistently older men still being sexy and suave and roping younger women (sometimes half their age), while older women get shoved into the margins. To play mothers to younger starring characters, grandmothers, or minor supporting roles. They're rarely given the chance to be shown doing anything active -- let alone driving a plot.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://spoilthedead.com/forum/showthread.php/22188-Women-and-Ageism-on-TWD/page4 | title = Fan, Doctor Grimes. Women and Ageism on TWD, posted December 24, 2015 on spoilthedead.com/forum|archiveurl=http://archive.fo/hfgy6|archivedate=2019-02-21 }}</ref>}}

Author K. Ancrum points out that ageism against male [[POC]] characters is also seen within fandoms, using characters played by [[Samuel L. Jackson]] as an example:

Author K. Ancrum points out that ageism against male [[POC]] characters is also seen within fandoms, using characters played by [[Samuel L. Jackson]] as an example:

{{quotation2|Samuel L. Jackson has prominent roles in numerous popular franchises, that have big presence in fandoms with rich shipping content – Star Wars, MCU, Kingsman… Yet, his characters are always left out of the shipping pool in these fandoms – Mace Windu is ignored; Nick Fury is seen as the “dad” figure of the avengers; and Valentine is seen as nothing more than a funny villain, even though, fandoms do love white male villains.<ref name=poc />}}

{{quotation2|Samuel L. Jackson has prominent roles in numerous popular franchises, that have big presence in fandoms with rich shipping content – [[Star Wars]], [[MCU]], [[Kingsman]]… Yet, his characters are always left out of the shipping pool in these fandoms – [[Mace Windu]] is ignored; [[Nick Fury]] is seen as the “dad” figure of the avengers; and Valentine is seen as nothing more than a funny villain, even though, fandoms do love white male villains.<ref name=poc />}}

A [[Tumblr]] anon also gives an example of ageism against an older male character, [[Blackwall]], in [[Dragon Age]] fandom:

A [[Tumblr]] anon also gives an example of ageism against an older male character, [[Blackwall]], in [[Dragon Age]] fandom: