[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 53 (Thursday, May 2, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E676]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                       EDITORIAL BY DR. BILL LEE

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ROBERT T. MATSUI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 1, 2002

  Mr. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share with my colleagues an 
exceptional editorial by Dr. Bill Lee of The Sacramento Observer, which 
underscores the threat Social Security privatization poses to minority 
communities. The Observer is the premier African-American news source 
in my hometown of Sacramento, and has been a staple of the community 
for nearly forty years. It has received over 500 national and local 
awards for journalism excellence, and has a weekly circulation of 
50,000 paid subscribers.
  Dr. Lee's column makes a critical point that is sometimes overlooked: 
privatizing Social Security would be devastating to minorities, who 
benefit disproportionately from the program. In fact, privatization 
would likely result in smaller benefits not only for minorities, but 
also for women and low-income workers.
  The future of Social Security is profoundly important to all 
Americans, particularly minorities. The voices of African-American 
leaders like Dr. Lee--the founding editor of the family-owned 
Observer--must be heard. I commend Dr. Lee for bringing this issue to 
the attention of his readers and his community, and I am proud to bring 
the Observer's unique perspective to the floor of the House.

                     [From the Sacramento Observer]

          Social Security Continues to Work for Us, Here's How

                        (By Dr. William H. Lee)

       Everywhere I look in the African American community, I see 
     the success stories of Social Security. I see seniors 
     counting on it in their retirement. I see people who were 
     able to pay their rent or make it through college thanks to 
     survivors'benefits. I know I am counting on Social Security 
     to help me in my golden years, just like others in the 
     African American community are counting on it.
       But why is Social Security so important?
       Social Security says a lot about who America is and what we 
     stand for as a nation. By providing seniors with guaranteed 
     retirement income for life and protecting young families who 
     lose a breadwinner to disability or death, Social Security 
     shows that America can be a compassionate nation.
       It proves that this is a nation with a bottom line: that we 
     can stand together, especially when life is most difficult. 
     It's a promise America has made to its people, a promise that 
     has kept millions of its citizens out of poverty.
       I want to tell you, however, about a threat to this 
     successful and popular program: proposals to privatize Social 
     Security.
       Privatization of the Social Security program may sound like 
     a good idea at first, but ``the devil is in the details''--
     the more you learn about it, the worse it becomes. It would 
     cut benefits and pave the way for the ultimate destruction of 
     the program. That is something we cannot allow to happen.
       Some people in Washington D.C. want us to believe that 
     Social Security is about to collapse. We have to make one 
     thing clear to our readers: Social Security is not in crisis.
       In March, the Social Security Trustees released their 
     annual report on the program's financial health. For the 
     fourth year in a row, the outlook improved.
       New economic and demographic projections show that Social 
     Security can pay full benefits until 2041. We need to 
     acknowledge the challenge ahead: four decades from now, 
     Social Security will only be able to pay three-quarters of 
     promised benefits.
       That is, however, a challenge we can overcome. It is not an 
     imminent crisis that requires the unraveling of Social 
     Security's fundamental purpose.
       Privatization proponents want you to believe that Social 
     Security is in crisis and that ``a radical change'' is 
     necessary. But the truth is privatization will only make 
     Social Security's financial problems worse.
       Privatization is based on the idea that one can take money 
     out of the trust fund without any negative consequences. But 
     this seemingly simple proposition is based on a flawed and 
     misleading understanding of how the program works.
       Since Social Security taxes are immediately paid out to 
     current beneficiaries (it's a ``pay-as-you-go'' system), 
     money taken out of the program would come directly out of our 
     parents or grandparents' pockets. That's why privatization 
     will mean benefit cuts. And these cuts would affect all 
     recipients--retirees, disabled workers, and survivors alike.
       And since privatization opens a gaping hole in Social 
     Security's finances, trillions of dollars would be needed to 
     make up the difference. Where would this money come from? No 
     one knows.
       Privatization will weaken Social Security for all 
     Americans, but for some the results will be even more 
     devastating.
       This is particularly true for African Americans. But, it is 
     also true for women, lower-income workers, and other ethnic 
     minorities.
       For example, minorities tend to benefit disproportionately 
     from the disability and survivors components of Social 
     Security, but these will be cut across the board to make room 
     for private accounts.
       Women are also particularly vulnerable to the effects of 
     privatization.
       For example, African American women, on average, live 
     longer than men and spend more time out of the workforce to 
     raise children or take care of elderly parents. As a result, 
     they would have less to deposit into private accounts. They 
     would therefore have to live on smaller benefits from smaller 
     accounts over a longer period of time, without the protection 
     from inflation offered by Social Security.
       Social Security serves as the foundation of a secure 
     retirement--unshakable by the ups and downs of the stock 
     market, the timing of your retirement, or corporate scandals. 
     Social Security is set up so that our nation's seniors, all 
     our seniors will be protected at the end of the road.
       It ensures that seniors will not suffer like Enron 
     employees who watched the value of their stock accounts 
     plummet and their dreams of a secure retirement vanish along 
     with it.
       Of course, Americans should be encouraged to save more. 
     Personal savings have an important role to play, especially 
     in the African American community. But it is critical that we 
     keep a portion of retirement income guaranteed. Social 
     Security is that guarantee.
       Privatization does not work. Social Security does. It has 
     worked in the African American community, and in all other 
     communities, for over 60 years. We should work together to 
     defend it, protect it, and improve it. But we should oppose 
     those who would fundamentally alter it, break it, or send it, 
     piece by piece, to its demise.

     

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