Aging is for the strong

When dealing with feminism, the fight against dictatorship, exile and the valorization of the female condition, Aging is for the Strong rescues the memory of the generation of women of 1968, today in their 60s or 70s, and adds an issue to this debate: old age.

Through the trajectory of eight pioneers, Aging is for the Strong seeks to rescue the history of the Círculo de Mulheres Brasileiras, a feminist group formed in Paris, in exile in the 1970s. Glória Ferreira, Vera Valdez, Lena Tejo, Eliana Aguiar, Lena Giacomini, América Ungaretti, Betânia and Vera Sílvia are the protagonists of Aging is for the Strong , with accounts of their experiences during exile in the dictatorship, the discoveries in feminist activism and the necessary reinventions throughout life.

Helena Celestino tells the story of each of these women of her generation, Brazilians with different backgrounds, whose lives intersected in the 1970s in Paris, and paints a picture of their struggle. Today, at 60 or 70+ years old, this generation that fought for sexual freedom has faced a change in their own bodies. Helena Celestino asserts that the difficulty of dealing with aging is still taboo and rarely features on the agenda of feminist groups. She thus brings up a discussion about ageism, demonstrating that this is just another reinvention that needs to be made by these women who have spent their lives reinventing themselves:

"They fought dictatorships, traveled the world and faced danger, led exciting lives, married many times, experienced the sexual revolution, lived in different countries, had children or refused motherhood, built families and professional careers, reinvented themselves several times, and continue to do so."

Aging is for the Strong recovers the memory of a generation of women who inherited the 1968 movements in an engaging narrative, showing their new challenges and teaching how the personal aspect is also political, and how memory is a form of resistance.