... :
18 THE CAROLINA TIKES SAT.. CCTC2ER 24, 1S31 ,
SOnETHlNO BLACK5 CAW PO KM Wth$HXB$tClSTm
To Be Equal
- , .
OVER 15 MILLION BLACKS ARE ELI
GIBLE TO VOTEIN THNOVEtBER . ,
ELECTION, ttlvT THEY hUST REGISTER
THE FOLLOWING COMMUNITY ORGAN
IZATIONS CAN DO WE JOB:
Undermining Social Security
By Vernon E. Jordan, Jr,
mitmm
mm
Editorial
Social Security is the most popular
federal program and has been since it was
started back in the 1930s. Now it Is being
undermined by widely-backed proposals
to cut back benefits, and by scare tactics
used by the system's opponents that sug
gest imminent bankruptcy; for the Social
Security trust funds. , , '
The constant barrage , of reports that
"Social Security is in trouble" are wrong
The system is not in trouble, and it won't
be if Congress resists the plans to cut it.
A short-term deficit is likely in the trust
fund that finances pension payments.
That can easily be dealt with by shuffling
money between the various funds making
up Social Security or by using general
revenue.
There is no reason to overhaul a system
that works because of a temporary cash '
flow problem that is easily resolved. By
1986, for demographic reasons, the. funds
will be solvent again. After that, trouble is
not expected until well into the next cen
tury, leaving plenty of time to work out
long-range answers to long-range pro
blems. So it is just plain wrong to frame the
system's problems in grossly exaggerated
terms designed to scare people into losing
Black Durham's Duty
With black folk making up 47 of the population of this city,
Durham could truly have city government which is represen
tative. We cannot afford to continue to let someone else pick the
decision-makers for us what we have done in the more recent
elections.; ,
It is particularly incumbent upon blacks to cast their votes in
the November 3 election. We have the most to gain by voting and
the most to lose by not voting. Too often we make the mistake of
considering local elections not to be important enough to make a
sacrifice to participate. It is on the local level that decisions are
made which directly affect us every day of our lives.
We need to have a whole lot of say about who sits on the City
Council, who serves on commissions, who makes appointments
and why. We can not afford to continue to take such a carefree
attitude about our existence in this city, county, state and nation.
Those who mean us no good have not slept a wink while plotting
ways to keep us divided and asleep. How much longer are we go
ing to keep swallowing this line of gunk? How much longer are
we going to keep sleeping? The world is passing us by.
It is nof only a duty to ourselves, but an obligation to genera
tions yet ufirtf td ieftfung stand1;ttilf j&t,
bailotTuWayi'tVefiitJer 3, evVri If we havd ttf ttawr to'get to.
the polls. The situation is just that serious.
a voteless people
confidence that they will ever collect their
: retirement benefits..'; -tt' ',! w-,.
And it is wrong to try to correct the
system's minor problems through major
surgery affecting the most vulnerable of
the elderly. But that is what many current
proposals amount to. U ; . :
Last summer, the Administration ram
med through one such idea. It persuaded
Congress to drop the minimum benefit, a
measly $30 per week That was a terrible
blow to the poorest of the elderly many
of them women who typically worked in
low-paying jobs or in non-coveted'
employment.
They were told that if they can't make it
withoih the minimum benefit, they could
. always apply, for welfare. That - insulted
elderly people who worked hard for low
wages all their lives just to keep off the
welfare rolls.
With Congress moving -swiftly to res- 4
cind that callous move, the president has
decided to join in asking for restoration
of the minimum benefit wise deci
sion. But the flap over that issue has
severely damaged his credibility in the
coming debate over the future of social
security.
After all, people heard him say he
would not take any benefits away from
current recipients, and then he proposed a '
measure that : would ' strip away the
minimum below which no elderly person :
could fall. - :,Vvi':'V.
So while the Administration is to be
commended for now attempting to put
social security on a permanently sound
footing, its track record in dealing with,
the poor "and the elderly engender great
suspicion.
Those doubts were only reinforced by
the President's continued backing for
drastic benefit reductions for those retir
ing at age 62.
People taking early retirement already
get reduced benefits. The majority choose
to retire early because they are in poor
health or because they can't find work.
We can expect further attacks on
benefit levels as political leaders seek
spending cuts to absorb the huge deficits
caused by tax cuts and military spending.
We must be on guard against any at
tempt to change Social Security from a
universal insurance system to a means
tested welfare program for the elderly.
Warnings of impending bankruptcy for .
the Social Security system and suggestions
that people rely on personal savings for
retirement only inspire fear. ,
Who Are The Real Criminals?
By Congressman Augustus F. Hawkins
is a
hopeless
On September 28th, President Reagan
delivered his first major talk on the pro
blem of crime in America, to the Interna
tional Association of Chiefs of Police.
Reagan's basic message to the Police
chiefs was that crime has grown because
of increased government spending; that
there is no connection between poverty
and crime; and that crime is a problem
"of the human heart" because today's
criminal, for the most part, is not a
desperate person seeking food for his
family, but it is the way of life he has
chosen to lead.
That's funny. . . .1 thought his Ad
ministration said increased government
spending is the cause for -inflation,
unemployment, high interest rates," high
taxes, a weak Social Security fiystem&w
ovh.'flrid abad-jftock market Npw,.
criminal activity has been added to the
list. Gee, I wonder if government spen
ding made Sugar Ray TKO Tommy
Hearns? , ---
Seriously, the President's remarks on
crime absolutely defy the realities of life
as we know it today, and fly in the face of
years of statistical and academic evidence
that argue a direct relationship between
unemployment and deteriorating social
conditions and increases in crime.
This Administration's simplistic ap
proach to a very complex problem is just
as reprehensible, disgracefuKand foolish
as is a street mugger's activities.
The President offered no new answers
to this cancerous problem. He ignored
dealing with handgun control . or
thoughtful reforms to the Criminal Code.
Instead, by looking at crime as a "pro
blem of the human heart", he looked at
the symptoms of criminal activity instead
of addressing the cause of such behavior.
A variety of studies over the last several
years have shown definite relationships
between rising unemployment rates and
increases in prison populations. Studies
have also shown the relationships between
increases in the unemployment rate and
increases in death rates, heart disease,
suicides, homicides, mental hospital ad
missions, and heightened family tensions
and disintegration. I firmly believe that
there can be no long-lasting effort to
reduce crime permanently without a ma
jor reduction in rates of unemployment
and efforts to ensure people access to
basic human dignities.
, The Administration's economic pro-
f gramiayjrogfO
. scnoo iiMnrne$7rawpm
from food stamps and medical care, and
requiring renters in subsidized housing to
use more of their paychecks for rent, will
literally make our lives and property less
safe. -
When so much Unemployment and
poverty exist side by side with so much af
fluence, when the rich get richer through
Administration sponsored tax breaks and
incentives, and the poor and jobless can't
move up the economic ladder because
they don't have the necessary skills and
education to succeed in a high technology
professional labor market, it almost
seems reasonable to suppose that faced
with these injustices, one might turn to
crime to satisfy unmet daily needs and
desires
Don't get me wrong. .. .1 am not say
ing all criminals aren't responsible for
their actions and do not deserve to pay a
debt to society if convicted. What I ai
saying is I do not support simple-minded
slogans as responses to a grave social pro
blem. We cannot ignore the cause of a
sickness, and treat only the symptoms.
That would be like stopping all efforts to
find a cure for cancer, and instead only
spend time and money on .making it easier
and less painful for people to die from the
disease.
The answer to crime in America is a
full-pr6nged attack on the causes of
crime, together with heightened sensitivity
and involvement from law enforcement
officials and citizens such as yourselves.
We must educate our young people on
how they can resolve conflicts within the
system, avoid legal problems, and deal
tc have to work as a community
together , to encourage a more open
dialogue between ourselves and law en
forcement officers. We must continue in
our neighborhoods to expand Crime Wat
ches and similar efforts which have pro
ven very effective in reducing crime in
local areas.
But law enforcement is only one aspect
of the problems; community im
provements, better schools, economic
development, welfare reform, training
programs and job creation, strengthened
family life, full employment. . . .these are
but a few of the substantial things we
should be supporting, because they- are
right in themselves and at the same time
would play an important roll in any crime
reduction program. Certainly, nothing
would be lost if we did the right things
anyhow.
Affirmative Action:
Blacks and T.V.
people
Gerald C. Home, Esquire
Thinfp Yea Should Knotf
mm
TURNER
1867-1923
Torn in cincinnati,ohiOHE won hish.s.de
oree at cincinnati university m 1692. after a
SHORT EXPERIENCE TEACHING BIOLOGY HE RESUM-j
ED STUDIES AT UNIVERSITY Of CHICAGOWINNING
HIS PH D. WJTH HIOHEST HONORS! HE DID EXTEN-
. ... .
Mvt KtetAKWf AND MADE MANY INVALUABLE CON
TRIBUTIONS IN A FIELD OF BIOLOGY 80 ADVANCED
AND COMPLEX THAT ONLY A FEW EXPERTS COULD
'FULLY APPRECIATE THEIR WORTH 1
That television is no longer considered
a cultural cornucopia is far from being
news. Many have railed at parents for us
ing it as a baby-sitter and as substitute for
interaction with their children. But blacks
in particular should be leary of the "boob
tube" because it is no longer an exaggera
tion to say that TV is a ticking time bomb
sitting in the living room.
The educational value of prime time
shows on the major networks is virtually
nil. A recent survey in California con
firms this truism by showing that the
more a student watches television, the
worse heshe does in school. - Wilson
Riles, the black educator who serves as
California Schools superintendent - has
said that no matter how much homework
the students did, how intelligent they were
or how much money their parents earned,
the relationship between television and
test scores was practically identical. "The
verbal dialogue that goes on in many of
those programs is of, very low quality and
the educational value would be nil;" said
.Riles. :;.. ::.-,;;;".; J iv-,f.;
Not only do these TV shows have no
educational value, but often they are plain
offensive. f'Sex sells" seems to be the
' main theme of TV producers as they
shamelessly pander to the4 prurient in
terest. Buxom lasses in wet t-shirts are on
the air more frequently than commercials
and "jiggle" shows have joined "sit
coms" as a discrete TV category.
, What effect this has on the spiralling
rate of sexual assault and rape one can on
speculate, as the networks hide sanc-
, timoniously behind the not too steady
shield of the First Amendment to justify
their crass exploitation. V
But the effect these TV shows have on
the exploding rate of teenage pregnancy is
now coming clear. Approximately one
million teenage girls become pregnant
each year with 600,000 births resulting
thirty per cent of these outside marriage.
All too often, because of the nature of
this society, these births are not celebrated
but deemed tragedies, as girls must fre
quently drop out of school, take a job and
curtail educational advance.
Now recent studies demonstrate the ef
fect of certain television shows on this
group; They tend to watch more TV than
those who do not become pregnant and '
tend to identify more with "romantic"
portrayals. These data suggest that TV
viewing habits and TV program content
influence adolescent sexuality and a pilot
study undertaken by the Southwest
Educational Development Laboratory is
expected to confirm this,
It would be reductionist to point to TV
as the villain behind every social problem
obviously a number of factors are at
play but it would be myopic to ignore
its powerful impact on society.
The black community should be doubly
outraged about television. Not only does
the;? content, of the : shows have a
devastatingly negative impact on black
society but this is done more often than
not without hiring black performers and
technical crews. . , ,
Take "Dallas" for example, the highly
popular tale of sex and sin that has made
CBS millions. Not only does it not feature
any black characters (in fact it has not
cast a black performer on the show since
it was first televised in September, 1979)
but when Tom Bishop, publicist of
Lorimar, the company that produces the
show, was asked if there were plans of
.casting a black in future roles, he
(Continued on Page 20
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L.E.AUSTIN
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