AARP Celebrates Social Security’s 80th Birthday at FDR House in Manhattan

Flash Mob Cuts “Social Security Card” Cake, Parties With Balloons, Birthday Cards Outside President’s Former Home

NEW YORK, New York – Marking the 80 ^th anniversary of Social Security, a flash mob of about 70 AARP volunteers and New York leaders of the association celebrated the earned benefits program today outside Roosevelt House on East 65 ^th Street in Manhattan with a cake in Social Security card motif, red, white and blue balloons, and birthday cards.

A second, similar celebration followed in front of the FDR memorial statue at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms Park on the southern tip of Roosevelt Island.

AARP chose the locations to honor the father of Social Security, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who lived with his family at 47-49 E. 65 ^th Street from 1908 until his third term as president in the early 1940s.

The location, now the Roosevelt House, was the spot of the first official discussion about Social Security – which included President Roosevelt and the first woman to serve in a presidential cabinet, New Yorker Frances Perkins, FDR’s Secretary of Labor.

“Social Security has provided a critical lifeline for Americans since Franklin Roosevelt – a great New Yorker - signed the program into law 80 years ago today,” said Beth Finkel, State Director of AARP for New York State. “AARP is thrilled to celebrate this milestone birthday for what is truly an earned benefits program for Americans; where better to do so than Roosevelt House?”

Four of every five Americans plan to rely on Social Security, according to a new national survey commissioned by AARP. Yet there is anxiety about its future; recent AARP New York surveys found 38 percent of voters in Generation X (ages 35 to 50) statewide and 33 percent in New York City don’t think they’ll ever get Social Security benefits.

Social Security:

• Keeps over 1.2 million New Yorkers out of poverty statewide, including more than 900,000 age 65 and above (about 43 percent of the state’s 65+ population as of last year).
• Accounted for half or more of the income for 59 percent of New Yorkers age 65+ (over 1.1 million statewide) in 2014.
• Provided the only source of income for 30 percent of older New Yorkers (over 570,000) last year.

“It’s hard to imagine 1.2 million New Yorkers struggling to feed, clothe and house themselves because they don't have a basic retirement income,” Finkel added.  “We can't take Social Security for granted -- especially with 80 percent of Americans planning to rely on the program. We pay into the system every day of our working lives, and we should be able to count on the benefits we’ve earned when the time comes. AARP looks forward to hearing from the 2016 presidential candidates on how they'll address Social Security so we can start a constructive dialogue on how to ensure it remains a rock of retirement.”

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Contact: Erik Kriss, ekriss@aarp.org  

AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, with a membership of more than 37 million, that helps people turn their goals and dreams into real possibilities, strengthens communities and fights for the issues that matter most to families such as healthcare, employment and income security, retirement planning, affordable utilities and protection from financial abuse. We advocate for individuals in the marketplace by selecting products and services of high quality and value to carry the AARP name as well as help our members obtain discounts on a wide range of products, travel, and services.  A trusted source for lifestyle tips, news and educational information, AARP produces AARP The Magazine, the world's largest circulation magazine; AARP Bulletin;  www.aarp.org ; AARP TV & Radio; AARP Books; and AARP en Español, a Spanish-language website addressing the interests and needs of Hispanics. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to political campaigns or candidates. AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity of AARP that is working to win back opportunity for struggling Americans 50+ by being a force for change on the most serious issues they face today: housing, hunger, income and isolation. AARP has staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Learn more at  www.aarp.org .

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