Despite the vast amount of research emphasizing the benefits of aging in place in later life, scant attention has been paid to the lived experiences of aging in place over the life course, particularly for minority, urban older adults (Golant, 2003). This study utilizes data from three years of ethnographic research with over thirty older (age 60+), African-American adults who have aged in place within Cleveland, OH. Their neighborhood has experienced an 80 percent decline in its population from 1950 to 2014 (1950: 39,280 residents; 2014: 6,239 residents). The community has also encountered deteriorating institutional supports and drastic increases in its crime and all-cause mortality rates. The presentation will focus on the older adults’ descriptions of why they aged in place within a neighborhood experiencing urban decline, and how they continued to make a life for themselves and their families despite their changing neighborhood landscape.
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