Mulheres do fim do mundo: a velhice de negras chefes de família acompanhadas pela política de assistência social

Abstract

The aging of Black women highlights the dynamics of domination and power and demands that racism, gender relations, ad social class be brought to the forefront. The old age of socially vulnerable Black women who head households goes hand in hand with the need to provide for subsequent generations, given the impacts of racism, violence, and exclusion on Black families, as well as being recipients of social assistance programs. The objective of this research was to describe the socio-family conditions of elderly Black women heads of households monitored by a Social Assistance Reference Center in the interior of Bahia, to identify the events in the elderly woman's family trajectory, to identify the social risk factors for their aging, and the protective factors available and/or developed in the old age of these women in a situation of social vulnerability. The study was divided into two stages: 1) an observational cross-sectional study, with a qualitative approach, based on secondary data obtained from the records of families headed by Black women over 60 years of age in the territory; 2) a qualitative study with elderly women identified in Study 1 who agreed to participate in stage 2, composed of a Narrative Interview as the data collection instrument. The results of Study 1 identified 51 elderly women who accessed the CRAS between 2020 and 2021, with an average age of 63.2 years. All of them are beneficiaries of the Continuous Cash Benefit (BPC) and the Bolsa Família Program (PBF), and the majority of them have access to one or more services, programs, and benefits of the PNAS, such as Emergency Benefits, family monitoring through PAIF or PAEFI, and the Service for Strengthening Bonds (SCFV). The second study was able to access 19 elderly women, whose narratives were produced and collected in the interview process. The information gathered in Study 2 points to large, multigenerational households, including the presence of children and grandchildren, where the elderly female head of the family bears the primary responsibility. The events in the family trajectory leading to this leadership, according to the study, are: the death of the spouse; the co-dependence of income and personal resources between the elderly woman and other family members; the abusive use of alcohol and other psychoactive substances by family members; socio-affective parenting; the welcoming of members from the spouse's extended family. The second part of Study 2 indicated the following elements as risk factors for the aging of Black women: racial violence, gender violence, domestic violence, criminal violence, patrimonial violence, child labor, precarious employment, labor in conditions analogous to slavery, community discrimination/exclusion, religious intolerance, irregular housing, and natural disaster victimization. The identified protective factors were: income, institutional support networks, community support networks, family support networks, religiosity, socio-affective parenting, personal purpose, and political activism. The aging of Black women, therefore, needs to be understood within a life context filled with challenges and resilience. Although these women face significant obstacles, ranging from domestic violence to financial dependency, they also build support networks that allow them to survive and, in some cases, thrive. Public policies that seek to strengthen these support networks and promote greater social equity are essential to ensuring that Black women can age with dignity and security. It is crucial that the state and civil society recognize the contributions of these women and act to eliminate the barriers that still prevent them from achieving a full and healthy life.