No, age changes don't work like sex changes

Is age simply a number? One man in the Netherlands thought so and tried to get a court to drop his age by 20 years. But regardless of how the legal battle turned out (spoiler alert: it didn't end well for him), Dutch laws will still shield him from age discrimination, just as U.S. employees are protected by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).

I am 69, going on 49

In the fall of 2018, Dutch media personality and self-proclaimed "positivity trainer" Emile Ratelband garnered worldwide attention by petitioning a Dutch court to change his age by 20 years. He was born in 1949 and wanted to change his year of birth to 1969. Why not? He claimed:

• His health was more similar to that of a 49-year-old, and he said he even looks closer to 49 than 69;
• He got more attention on dating apps as a 49-year-old as opposed to a 69-year-old;
• At 69, he was subject to age discrimination; and
• An age change is akin to a sex change. Since people are allowed to determine and change gender, why not age?

In December 2018, the court ruled against Ratelband, acknowledging age is tied to social identity but reasoning that allowing such a change would lead to further complications with regard to reliance on (and monitoring of) a particular date to determine the origin of rights and obligations, such as marrying, drinking alcohol, and being licensed to drive a car. Conversely, the existence of a right to declare oneself younger could lead to a right to declare oneself older, which would bring a whole new meaning to "threenagers," "old souls," and "13 going on 30."