For S4, Social Security's Crucial
Student Organization Present During Presidential Campaigns
Students for Saving Social Security is a group founded five years ago to help young people and presidential candidates realize that their issue is an important one.
What They Stand For
One of many groups catching the attention of both voters and candidates in this election is the Students for Saving Social Security. Named as one of CNN’s “Young People Who Rock,” this groups relies on gimmicks that have gained attention in both the news and the campaign trail to bring the issue of Social Security to the attention of the masses.
The group, also known as S4, is led by 22-year-old Jo Jensen from Concord, New Hampshire who joined the already established campaign and now runs it. Jensen became interested in Social Security when she took a classes on taxes in college. A registered Republican, she changed her party to Independent upon voting at the New Hampshire Primary Election. She now operates the five-year-old group on a $250,000 annual budget with two full-time employees, two part-time people and a handful of active volunteers. Nine members live in a house in Concord established as the group's headquarters. Members, especially volunteers, are lured in with college inspired tactics such as pizza parties and bake sales. These volunteers help in bringing about the group’s unorthodox methods of raising awareness for their cause.
Unorthodox Practices
The group’s unusual tactics include the use of an “Ostrich Mobile” and dressing in ostrich costumes to greet candidates who ignore the issue by “sticking their heads in the sand” about the issue. They’ve been known to hand out T-shirts at senior citizen events reading “My Grandparents Got Social Security, and All I Got Was This T-shirt” and cups that say “Wake Up to Social Security Reform.” Recently, they have begun to wear neon green t-shirts to campaign events that read “New Hampshire Cares About Social Security.”
Who They Influence
Hillary Clinton has told the group that Social Security is not going to be her primary issue in her first year if she wins the presidential election, though she did maintain that the issue is important. Her addressing of their questions at a town hall meeting had the question answered in front of a crowd of 2,000 people, gaining important exposure for the group. John McCain led an applause at a town meeting for the group when he spotted their colorful neon-coated group in a crowd.
Its not only the candidates that the group hopes to influence but their peers as well. They believe that young people are not passionate enough about the Social Security issue, even though it is they who will be affected by it. The Social Security Administration reports that the system is facing a $13.4 trillion deficit. This is due to the fact that there are more retirees than workers able to pay into Social Security for future retirees. Their solution is the creation and use of more personal retirement accounts to relieve this shortage. This way young people are in control of how much is saved for their individual retirement.
