Andrew Blechman
From a Q & A with Andrew Blechman, author of Leisureville—Adventures in America’s Retirement Utopias, now available in paperback:
Q: You seem to have strong feelings about age segregation.Read an excerpt from Leisureville, and learn more about the book and author at Andrew Blechman's website and blog.
A: "When you segregate people, they forget what they have in common and start worrying about their own needs only. For me the canary in the coal mine was when Sun City (a large Arizona retirement community)defeated 17 school bond measures. The kids were going to school in staggered shifts and using trailers doubling as classrooms.
"What's the message? They're saying: 'We don't care about your kids. In fact, we don't want to have anything to do with them, even though we live across the street.' That worries me, and I think it should worry other people as well.
"This is nothing less than a revolution in our society. Twelve million people in the next decade or so are going to be living like this. And we're talking age 55 and older; we're not talking old people."
Q: Did you encounter people who could no longer afford to live in these communities?...[read on]
The Page 69 Test: Leisureville.
My Book, The Movie: Leisureville.
--Marshal Zeringue
