The mass exodus of millions of African Americans from the rural south to large urban areas across the United States was nothing more than great. During this Great Migration, almost half of the black adults in North Carolina left the state, most of them settling in and around New York. Now, those who left are steadily returning home to North Carolina to retire in a Great "Reverse" Migration.
“Half of today’s working-age households are unlikely to have enough resources to maintain their standard of living once they retire,” according to the National Retirement Risk Index, compiled by Boston College’s Center for Retirement Research. That conclusion is based on very conservative assumptions, according to the index, which measures the share of working-age American households at risk of being unable to maintain their pre-retirement standard of living in retirement.
For example, Medicare, the federal health care program for people ages 65 and older, requires certain Lawful Permanent Residents to pay an expensive premium, depending on their work history and length of residence. Naturalization ensures access to Medicare on the same basis as all other Americans. The same is true of Supplemental Security Income (SSI), a public program that pays benefits to disabled adults and low-income children. Lawful Permanent Residents who came to the United States in refugee status may receive SSI regardless of work history or length of residence, but generally only for seven years.
Reaffirming his commitment to protect current and future generations who depend on Social Security, President Obama declared in Tuesday’s State of the Union address, “Our government shouldn’t make promises we cannot keep -- but we must keep the promises we’ve already made.” Indeed, we must keep the promise of old-age security that Americans have earned through hard work. The nation’s politicians should be held accountable to keep their word that they will not cut the Social Security benefits of older workers, retirees, people with disabilities and the children of deceased and disabled parents.
In curating this lineup, I selected four films that all share one specific point of commonality: flawed people trying to make it through their day despite the odds being stacked against them. Some stories are more successful than others, yet these four films demonstrate a unique perspective in their search to make sense of our current American lifestyles.
Godfrey was returning to the area at the time to find inspiration for a book about the lives of the girls who live in a group home since they have nowhere else to go. There, she meets Josephine Bell, the de facto leader of the girls. Godfrey quickly learns of their harsh lifestyle and the fact that the city sees them as disposable.
