1098

1099

The War on Terrorism 1100

Iraq: Confronting a Dictatorship 1104

The Debate over Immigration 1106

Crime and Public Safety 1108

Issues in Education 1110

The Communications Revolution 1112

Curing the Health Care System 1114

Breaking the Cycle of Poverty 1116

Tough Choices About Social Security 1118

Women in the Work Force 1120

The Conservation Controversy 1122

2000 people with a series of bombsexploded on the Madrid subways.

Groups belonging to the al-Qaeda terrorist organization operatein many countries. Officials havelinked several major attacks againstU.S. facilities in Africa to al-Qaeda,including bombings at the U.S.embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.Jemaah Islamiah, an Islamic revolu-tionary group linked to al-Qaeda, hasorganized numerous attacksthroughout Southeast Asia.

TACTICS AND MOTIVESMost terrorists target high-profileevents or crowded places such assubway stations, restaurants, orshopping malls. Terrorists choosethese spots carefully to gain the most

Palestinian group killed two Israeliathletes and took nine othershostage, later killing them. Five ofthe terrorists and a police officerwere killed during a rescue attempt.

Since then, terrorist activitieshave occurred across the globe. TheIrish Republican Army (IRA) used ter-rorist tactics for decades to opposeBritish control of Northern Ireland.The IRA officially renounced vio-lence in 2005. In South America, agroup known as the Shining Pathterrorized the residents of Peruthroughout the late 20th century.The group sought to overthrow thegovernment and establish aCommunist state. In 2004, Islamicradicals killed and injured nearly

On the morning of September11, 2001, two airlinerscrashed into the twin towers

of the World Trade Center in NewYork City and a third smashed into asection of the Pentagon, across theriver from Washington, D.C. Afourth airliner crashed in a field inthe Pennsylvania countryside.Nineteen Arab terrorists hadhijacked the four planes and usedthem as missiles in an attempt todestroy predetermined targets. Thefirst three planes hit their intendedtargets. In the fourth plane, passen-gers fought the hijackers and theplane went down short of its target.

Explosions and raging fireseverely weakened the twin towers.Within two hours after the attacks,both skyscrapers had crumbled tothe ground. One wing of thePentagon was extensively damaged.About 3,000 people were killed inthe attacks—the most destructiveacts of terrorism in modern history.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVETerrorism is the use of violenceagainst people or property to extortchanges in societies or governments.Throughout history, individuals andgroups have used terror tactics toachieve political or social goals. Inrecent decades, however, terroristgroups have carried out more andincreasingly destructive attacks. TheU.S. National CounterterrorismCenter recorded over 14,000 terroristincidents worldwide in 2006 alone.

Modern international terrorismgained world attention during the1972 Summer Olympic Games inMunich, Germany. Members of a

The War on TerrorismHow can the United States combat terrorism?

1100

The twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York burn after the September 11 attacks.

After the first few days, thework at “ground zero,” the WorldTrade Center disaster site, shiftedto recovering bodies and remov-ing the massive amount of debris.The destroyed twin towersaccounted for an estimated 2 bil-lion pounds of rubble.

Once the area was cleared,plans to rebuild the site were pro-posed. In February 2003, a devel-opment committee chose a designfor a new building complex thatwould rise taller than the WorldTrade Center towers. The com-plex, which officials estimatedwould take about 10 years tobuild, would include a memorialpark with pools, a cultural center,and a 1,776-foot spire.

IMPACT OF 9/11The attacks of September 11 dra-matically altered the wayAmericans looked at life. For thefirst time, many Americansbecame afraid that terrorism couldhappen in their own country atany time.

This sense of vulnerability wasintensified when another wave ofattacks hit the United States a fewdays after September 11. Letterscontaining anthrax spores weresent to people in the news media

the burning buildings to help thoseinside and never came out again.Entire squads were lost.

Firefighters worked around theclock trying to find survivors in thewreckage. They had to contend withshifting rubble and smoky, ash-filledair. Medical workers from the arearushed to staff the city’s trauma cen-ters. But after the first wave ofinjured were rescued, there were fewsurvivors to treat.

A flood of volunteers assistedrescue workers. From around thecountry, people sent generous dona-tions of blood, food, and money toNew York City.

attention and to achieve the highestlevel of intimidation.

Terrorists use bullets and bombsas their main weapons. In recentyears, however, some terrorist groupshave used biological and chemicalagents in their attacks. These actionsinvolve the release of bacteria or poi-sonous gas into the air. Gas was theweapon of choice for a radicalJapanese religious cult, AumShinrikyo. In 1995, cult membersreleased sarin, a deadly nerve gas, insubway stations in Tokyo. Twelvepeople were killed and more than5,700 injured. The possibility of thistype of terrorism is particularly wor-rying, because biochemical agentsare relatively easy to acquire.

The reasons for terrorist attacksvary. Traditional motives includegaining independence, expelling for-eigners, or changing society. Theseobjectives frequently give rise todomestic terrorism—violence usedby people to change the policies oftheir own government or to over-throw their government.

In the late 20th century, anothertype of terrorism began to emerge.Terrorists wanted to achieve politicalends or destroy what they consid-ered to be forces of evil. Theyattacked targets not just in their owncountry, but anywhere in the world.These terrorists were even willing tocommit suicide to ensure the successof their attacks.

RESCUE AND REBUILDINGOn September 11, the weapons theterrorists used were planes loadedwith fuel. The planes becamedestructive missiles when theycrashed into their targets.

Amidst the brutal destruction atthe World Trade Center, the courage,selflessness, and noble actions ofNew York City’s firefighters, policeofficers, and rescue workers stood asa testament. Many of the first fire-fighters at the scene disappeared into

Epilogue 1101

The attacks of

September 11

dramatically

altered the way

Americans looked

at life.

A flag flies over the rubble of the World Trade Center while firefighters and rescue workerssearch for survivors.

Cabinet post—that of national intel-ligence director. On April 21, 2005,the U.S. Senate confirmed JohnNegroponte’s appointment to thatposition.

USA PATRIOT ACTTo give the government the power toconduct search and surveillance ofsuspected terrorists, the USA PatriotAct was signed into law on October26, 2001. This law allowed the gov-ernment to:• detain foreigners suspected of ter-

rorism for seven days withoutcharging them with a crime. Insome cases, prisoners were heldindefinitely.

• tap all phones used by suspects andmonitor their e-mail and Internetuse.

• make search warrants valid acrossstates.

• order U.S. banks to investigatesources of large foreign accounts.

• prosecute terrorist crimes withoutany time restrictions or limitations.

the Taliban from power. However,the fight to destroy al-Qaeda contin-ued. Bin Laden was not captured,and his fate remained unknown.Meanwhile, the United Nationsworked with the Northern Allianceand other Afghan groups to establishan interim government to replacethe Taliban. Later, in 2003, Afghanleaders adopted a constitution, andin 2004, Hamid Karzai was electedpresident of Afghanistan. Peace,however, was elusive. Since 2005,insurgent attacks by Taliban and al-Qaeda militants have posed a con-tinuing threat.

In 2002, President Bush calledfor a commission to investigatewhether the September attacks couldhave been prevented and how toprevent future attacks. In 2004, the9/11 Commission issued a reportthat stressed the need for greatercooperation and coordination with-in the government. It also recom-mended the creation of a new

and to members of Congress inWashington, D.C. When inhaled,these spores could damage the lungsand cause death. Five people diedafter inhaling the spores in taintedletters. Two were postal workers.

Some investigators believed thatthe letters were sent by a lone terror-ist and not by a terrorist group. Nolink between the letters and theSeptember 11 attacks was everfound. The anthrax letters increasedAmericans’ fear of terrorism.

THE UNITED STATES RESPONDSAfter conducting a massive investiga-tion, the U.S. government deter-mined that Osama bin Laden, aSaudi Arabian millionaire, haddirected the terrorists responsible forthe September 11 attacks. The terror-ists were part of the al-Qaeda net-work. The home base for al-Qaedawas Afghanistan, ruled by a strictIslamic regime called the Taliban.The Taliban supported the terroristgroup. In return, bin Laden providedfighters to the Taliban.

The United States, led byPresident George W. Bush, built aninternational coalition, or alliance,to fight terrorism and the al-Qaedanetwork. Great Britain played aprominent role in this coalition.After the Taliban refused to turn overbin Laden, coalition forces led by theUnited States began military actionin Afghanistan.

In October 2001, the UnitedStates launched Operation EnduringFreedom. The military began bomb-ing Taliban air defenses, airfields,and command centers, as well as al-Qaeda training camps. Within twomonths, U.S. special forces andmarines and fighters from theNorthern Alliance, a coalition ofanti-Taliban Afghan troops, drove

HistorHistory of Terrorist Attacks Against the United States

Libyan terrorists explodea bomb in an airplane,causing it to crash inLockerbie, Scotland,killing 270 people.

Theodore Kaczynski,the Unabomber, usesmail bombs to kill 3people over 17 years.

Shi’ites explode atruck near U.S. mili-tary barracks inBeirut, Lebanon,killing 241 Marines.

Suspected al-Qaeda terroristsexplode bombs in the WorldTrade Center in New YorkCity, killing 6 and injuring atleast 1,040.

Timothy McVeigh uses a truckto destroy the Murrah FederalBuilding in Oklahoma CityOklahoma, killing 168 people.(page 1068)

1978 1983 1988 1993 1995

1102

Tom Ridge, the first to hold the position of Secretary of Department of Homeland Security,introduces the color-coded threat advisory system.

In November 2001, PresidentBush signed into law the Aviationand Transportation Security Act,which made airport security theresponsibility of the federal govern-ment. Previously, individual airportshad been responsible for their ownsecurity. Because of this new law, aagency called the TransportationSecurity Administration (TSA) wascreated to inspect airline passengers,baggage, and cargo, as well as non-citizens training to be pilots. The TSAis also responsible for safety on rail-roads, buses, and mass transit sys-tems. Security operations at airportscreated several major concerns,including long delays and possibleinvasion of passengers’ privacy. Asthe United States fought terrorismand tried to balance national securi-ty with civil rights, the public debateover security measures continued.

ciously or who violated immigrationregulations. Many suspects were heldin a prison camp at GuantanamoBay, Cuba. The United States facedmounting criticism both at homeand abroad regarding its treatmentof detainees. Critics claimed thatdetaining these people withoutcharging them and without access toattorneys violated their civil rights.The government argued that limit-ing civil liberties in wartime to pro-tect national security was not unusu-al. U.S. officials used the same argu-ment to try some terrorist suspects inmilitary tribunals rather than incriminal courts.

AVIATION SECURITYThe federal government’s role in avi-ation security also increased.National Guard troops beganpatrolling airports, and sky marshalswere assigned to airplanes. In addi-tion, the Federal AviationAdministration (FAA) had barsinstalled on cockpit doors to preventhijackers from entering cockpits.

People who opposed the lawclaimed that it violated the First,Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and SeventhAmendments. In 2005 it wasrevealed that President Bush hadordered the National SecurityAgency (NSA) to spy on Americancitizens’ international telephonecalls and e-mails without obtainingwarrants.

ANTITERRORIST ACTIONSTo combat terrorism on the homefront, the Bush administration creat-ed the Department of HomelandSecurity in 2002, initially headed byformer Pennsylvania governor TomRidge. This executive departmentwas designed to analyze threats,guard the nation’s borders, seaports,and airports, and coordinate thecountry’s response to attacks. Tohelp share information about therisk of terrorist attacks with theAmerican people, the departmentcreated the Homeland SecurityAdvisory System. This system used aset of “Threat Conditions” to advisethe public about the level of terroristthreats and provided guidelines forresponse during a period of height-ened alert.

The Department of HomelandSecurity also searched for terrorists inthe United States. The governmentsoon discovered that the al-Qaedanetwork had used "sleepers" to carryout its terrorist attacks. Sleepers areagents who enter a country, blendinto a community, and when calledupon, secretly prepare for and com-mit terrorist acts. An intensive searchbegan for any al-Qaeda terrorists,including sleepers, that remained inthe United States. U.S. officialsdetained and questioned Arabs andother Muslims who behaved suspi-

2001The Islamic militantgroup Hezbollahexplodes a truck bombin Dhahran, SaudiArabia, killing 19American servicemen.

The bombing of theUSS Cole in Aden,Yemen, is linked toOsama bin Laden andkills 17 Americansailors.

Arab terrorists crashplanes into the WorldTrade Center, thePentagon, and aPennsylvania field,killing about 3,000.

Al-Qaeda explodesbombs near two U.S.embassies in Nairobi,Kenya, and Dar esSalaam, Tanzania,killing 224.

1996 1998 2000 2001

Epilogue 1103

An airport security official inspects a traveler’s shoe at a security checkpoint.

PREDICTING EFFECTSHow effective do you think theantiterrorist measures taken by theBush administration will be inpreventing or dealing with futureterrorist attacks?

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutWar on Terrorism.

and Great Britain cut off diplomaticrelations with Iraq.

In early February 2003, U.S.Secretary of State Colin Powell gavea presentation to the UN SecurityCouncil, maintaining that Iraq washiding WMD. Soon thereafter, theUnited States and Great Britainpressed the UN to pass a resolutionthat authorized the use of militaryforce against Iraq. As an alternative,France, Germany, and Russia pre-sented a plan that called for inten-sifying the inspections.

The United States and GreatBritain countered by claiming that anew UN resolution was not neces-sary since Iraq was in violation ofthe old agreement. They alsoclaimed that Iraq’s violation justi-fied the use of military force to over-turn Hussein’s regime.

Meanwhile, protests against apossible war in Iraq increased athome and abroad. Antiwar protest-ers participated in more than 600rallies around the globe on a singleday in February. An estimated750,000 protesters turned out inLondon—the largest demonstrationever in the British capital. Mostdemonstrations were peaceful.

WAR IN IRAQIn March 2003, the United Statesand Great Britain launchedOperation Iraqi Freedom. The warbegan with massive air raids; sec-

Because of this, the United Statesand Great Britain declared in 1998that they supported the removal ofHussein from his office and the end-ing of his regime. In response,Hussein barred arms inspectorsfrom entering his country.

STEPS TOWARD WARAfter the attacks on September 11,2001, the United States called for arenewal of the arms inspections inIraq. In November 2002, the UNSecurity Council passed a resolutiondesigned to force Iraq to give up allweapons of mass destruction(WMD). Arms inspections resumed,but Hussein again refused to cooper-ate fully. Soon, the United States

Since 1979, Saddam Hussein’sregime in Iraq had brutallyrepressed opposition. The

Iraqi dictator had ruled withoutregard for the welfare of his peopleor for world opinion. During hisState of the Union address inJanuary 2003, President George W.Bush declared Hussein too great athreat to ignore in an age ofincreased terrorism. He promisedto do everything possible to pre-vent Iraq from launching a terroristattack on the United States.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEIn August 1990, the Iraqi army hadinvaded Kuwait, a small countrythat shares Iraq’s southwestern bor-der. Saddam Hussein wantedKuwait’s huge oil reserves. TheUnited Nations (UN) condemnedthe occupation and approved theuse of force to end it.

On January 16, 1991, thePersian Gulf War began. Coalitionforces led by the United States droveIraq’s army out of Kuwait within sixweeks. A cease-fire agreement withthe UN prohibited Iraq from pro-ducing chemical, biological, andnuclear weapons.

The United Nations periodicallysent arms inspectors to Iraq to makesure Hussein was complying withthe cease-fire agreement. However,the Iraqi dictator refused to cooper-ate fully with the inspectors.

Iraq: Confrontinga Dictatorship

How should the United States deal with dangerous dictators?

History of Saddam Hussein’s Regime

1104

The Iraqi Air Force releasespoisonous gases over theKurdish town of Halabja, Iraq,killing about 5,000 people.

Saddam Husseinseizes powerin Iraq.

Iraq invades Iran’s oilfields, triggering theIran-Iraq War, whichcontinues until 1988.

Iraq invades Kuwait inan attempt to seize thatnation’s oil revenues.

1979 1980 1988 1990

“By seeking

weapons of mass

destruction,

these regimes

pose a grave and

growing danger.”PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH

found. This led many in the UnitedStates and Great Britain to questionthe necessity for the war. Bush andBritish Prime Minister Tony Blairresponded by claiming that theyhad based their decision on intelli-gence later proved to have beenfaulty. In May 2005, a top-secretmemo known as the DowningStreet memo became public. It sug-gested that the Bush administrationhad planned to invade Iraq as earlyas July 2002. As a result, 560,000Americans signed a letter by U.S,Representative Conyers to PresidentBush asking for the truth about thedecision to invade Iraq. In June, asU.S. casualties continued to rise, amajority of polled Americans sup-ported withdrawal from Iraq.

IRAQ AFTER HUSSEINOn October 15, 2005, Iraqi voters nar-rowly accepted a new constitution. InDecember, Iraq held elections tochoose a permanent parliament. TheShiites captured a majority of seats,but not enough to control the gov-ernment. Sunni and Kurdish legisla-tors rejected the Shiites’ first candidatefor prime minister. In April 2006, theNational Assembly approved a com-promise candidate, Nuri al-Maliki, asthe new prime minister.

Despite this progress, violencebetween Sunnis and Shiites continuedto plague Iraq. Militants also attackedU.S. troops. In response, PresidentBush announced a plan in January2007 to send 20,000 more U.S. com-bat troops to Iraq. Many Americansopposed the plan, but it went intoeffect later that year.

Muslim parties won a majority ofseats in Iraq’s election for a transi-tional National Assembly that woulddraft Iraq’s constitution. Shiiteseventually agreed to allow membersof the Sunni Muslim minority toparticipate in shaping the country’sconstitution.

Despite the war’s end, violencecontinued. Objecting to the CPA—and later, to the Shiite government—insurgents, or rebels, engaged in actsof violence that killed thousands,including many Americans.

SEARCH FOR WMDThe case for going to war againstIraq was based on assertions by theU.S. and British governments thatSaddam Hussein had WMD. Oncemajor combat ended on May 1, U.S.forces began an extensive search forthese weapons. Movable biologicallaboratories containing sophisticat-ed equipment were located, but bymid-2005, no WMD had been

tions of Baghdad were the primarytargets. U.S. ground troops thenraced toward the Iraqi capital. ByApril 2, U.S. forces had reached theoutskirts of the city. Within a week,Baghdad had fallen to the U.S. mil-itary. Meanwhile, British troopsseized the city of Basra. Coalitiontroops had taken control of most ofIraq by April 14. Hussein survivedthe attack and was finally capturedon December 13, 2003. He was con-victed of crimes against humanityand hanged in 2006. In 2004, reportsabout U.S. treatment of detainees inIraq’s Abu Ghraib prison generatedwidespread criticism.

After the fall of Hussein’sregime, the United States led in theestablishment of the CoalitionProvisional Authority (CPA) to tem-porarily govern Iraq and oversee itsreconstruction. On June 28, 2004,the CPA was replaced by a tempo-rary government made up of Iraqis.And on January 30, 2005, Shiite

Epilogue 1105

The Persian Gulf Warbegins in January andends six weeks later.The UN prohibits Iraqfrom producing WMD.

In March, the United States andGreat Britain launch OperationIraqi Freedom. Major combat endsin May, and Hussein is overthrown.

Iraq’s refusal to cooperate withUN arms inspectors leads to afour-day strike by the UnitedStates and Great Britain.

1991 1998 2003

In Baghdad, Iraqis pull down a statue of Saddam Hussein after the dictator’s regime isoverthrown.

PREDICTING EFFECTSDo you think the U.S.-led strikeagainst Iraq will result in similar warsagainst other dangerous regimes?

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutIraq: Confronting a Dictatorship.

households headed by illegal immi-grants received approximately $10billion more in government ser-vices than they paid in taxes.

In 1994, California’s votersapproved Proposition 187, denyingillegal immigrants access to publiceducation and state-funded healthcare. A federal court later ruled thatlaw unconstitutional. In 1996,Congress passed a law that tough-ened measures to bar illegal entryinto the United States.

In February 2005, PresidentBush proposed a new immigrationpolicy. Stating that “America’simmigration system is . . . unsuitedto the needs of our economy andthe values of our country,” the pres-ident endorsed a guest worker pro-gram. The program would allowforeigners to work in the UnitedStates for up to six years, afterwhich they would be required toreturn to their own countries.Alternate programs also were beingconsidered.

ECONOMIC DEBATEThose who favor limits claim thatimmigrants take jobs from Amer-icans. However, data suggest thatimmigration has not hurt the econ-omy and may have helped fuelits growth. At the same time thatmillions of immigrant workers—including some undocumentedworkers—were joining the work

growth spurred more than 16 mil-lion Europeans to move to theUnited States. The same pressureshave recently hit Asia and LatinAmerica, with the same effect onthe United States. Between 1989and 2004, more than 15 millionnew immigrants came to theUnited States.

ILLEGAL ENTRYComplicating the debate has beenthe issue of illegal immigrants. By2005, the number of illegal immi-grants living in the United Stateswas estimated at about 10 million.A 2004 report by the Center forImmigration Studies stated that

For hundreds of years, immi-grants working for theirdreams have shaped the

United States. Latino ranchers devel-oped many of the tools and skills ofthe American cowboy. Chinese labor-ers laid the tracks of the transconti-nental railroad. African Americans,though not voluntary immigrants,labored to develop the agriculture ofthe South and the industry of theNorth. Farmers and workers of everyorigin built the nation we know today.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEBut immigration has been arguedthroughout American history. In the1700s, Benjamin Franklin worriedabout the number of Germans immi-grating to Pennsylvania. Sharp anti-immigration sentiment spurred thenativist movement that developed inthe 1830s and the “America First”campaign of the 1920s.

Americans today are divided onthe issue. Some agree with formerNew York City mayor RudolphGiuliani that immigrants “chal-lenge us with new ideas and newperspectives.” Others side withDan Stein of the Federation forAmerican Immigration Reform,who has said that “large-scaleimmigration is not serving theneeds and interests of the country.”

RISING NUMBERSFrom 1900 into the 1940s, econom-ic troubles and rapid population

The Debate overImmigration

Should new laws restrict or expand immigration?

History of Immigration in the United States

1106

Chinese ExclusionAct severely restrictsimmigration fromChina (page 460).

Benjamin Franklindenounces Germanimmigrants.

Nativists form Know-Nothing Party to protestincrease in immigration(page 319).

President Clevelandvetoes bill requiringimmigrants to passliteracy test.

Emergency QuotaAct begins era oflimits on immigration(page 621).

1751 1853 1882 1896 1921

“America’s immi-

gration system is

. . . unsuited to

the needs of our

economy and the

values of our

country.”PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH

that at 12 percent of the popula-tion, foreigners are too numerousin America. Historian DavidKennedy points out that in 1910the percentage was even higher—14.7 percent.

Those who favor limits claimthat new immigrants do not mixwith other groups, forming ethnicneighborhoods that divide society.Others believe that immigrantsenrich American cultural life.

MORAL ISSUESThe issue of asylum—providing asafe place for people fleeing oppres-son—has been the toughest of all.While immigration is allowed forpolitical asylum, those who fleefamine or poverty are turned away.Are such choices fair?

Some rules allow relatives ofimmigrants to enter the country.Representative Lamar Smith of Texasbelieves that these rules admit immi-grants who “have no marketable skillsand end up on welfare.” Yet, social sci-entist Nathan Glazer says that con-cern about the number of immigrantsconflicts with sympathy for those“trying to bring in wives, children,parents, brothers, and sisters.”

Alan Simpson, a former U.S.senator, believes that there are sim-ply too many immigrants. Slowimmigration for five years, he pro-posed. But in Gallup polls taken atthe turn of this century, 43 percentof those polled favored Simpson’sidea, while 54 percent agreed thatimmigration should either be keptat its present level or increased.

only 155,330 immigrants enteredunder these categories during 2004.

CITIZENSHIP RESPONSIBILITYSome people are concerned thatmany immigrants never becomecitizens and so fail to completelyparticipate in U.S. life. Statisticsshow that the percentage of immi-grants gaining citizenship declinedfrom 64 percent in 1970 to 38 per-cent in 2005, one of the lowestrates in a century. Experts attributethe drop to a variety of factors,including rising numbers of illegalimmigrants, a backlog of applica-tions, and a presumed lack of inter-est among many immigrants. Theoath of U.S. citizenship carries withit such responsibilities as voting,serving on juries, and, in somecases, military service.

CULTURAL CONCERNSThe diversity of the U.S. populationhas raised concerns that Americahas no common culture. Some say

force, unemployment fell from 7.1percent in 1980 to 4.3 percent inMarch 2001, the lowest rate in 30years. Although the rate had risento 5.1 percent by May 2005, it wasstill relatively low.

Another argument focuses onwages. Economists agree that immi-grants tend to work for lower wagesthan native-born workers. HarvardUniversity economists estimatedthat one-third of the gap betweenlow-paid and high-paid workersresults from higher numbers ofimmigrants. But they also reportedthat other factors—foreign trade,declining union membership, andnew technology—play a greater rolein lowering wages.

Immigrants fill skilled, high-paying jobs as well. Current lawlimits the number of immigrantswho may enter the United Stateswithin specific employment cate-gories, or preferences. The 2004limit was set at 204,422. However,

Epilogue 1107

Immigration Actloosens restrictionsin place since 1924(page 897).

Congress passeslaws that limitbenefits to illegalimmigrants.

Census Bureau estimatesnation’s foreign-born at34.8 million, or 1 in 10residents.

California passes Prop-osition 187, excludingbenefits to illegalimmigrants (page 1092).

1965 1994 1996 2005

Members of the Latin American community in Los Angeles raise their hands to bless fruitbaskets as a sign of immigrants’ daily work in California’s fields. The sign reads “This fruit isthe product of immigrants’ labor.”

PREDICTING EFFECTSHow might the measures restrictingillegal immigrants affect future lawsthat regulate legal immigration?

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutThe Debate over Immigration.

• There are fewer males aged 15 to29, the group most likely to com-mit crimes.

• The trade in crack cocaine slowed.• The unemployment rate gradually

decreased throughout the 1990s.Generally, when more peoplehave jobs, crime rates fall.

Perhaps the biggest factor hasbeen new policing efforts. Policedepartments have taken officers outof patrol cars and put them back onthe streets. Police have also taken amore active role in their neighbor-hoods. Crime prevention methodsnow focus on an intense effort to

early 1990s, the rates of violentcrimes and car thefts increased bymore than 20 percent.

Beginning in 1992, however,these rates began to drop and con-tinued declining throughout thedecade. The FBI announced that in2003 violent crime had dipped to a20-year low and was a third lowerthan in 1994. In 2000 the murderrate also reached a 20-year low andwas relatively stable for the next 6years.

RECENT SUCCESSExperts have identified a few causesfor falling crime rates:

On an early March day in2001, Alicia Zimmer, astudent at Santana High

School outside San Diego, foundherself in the middle of gunfire inthe hallways. A 15-year-old boy hadbrought a gun to school and hadbegun firing at his fellow students.“I was probably about 10 feet awayfrom some of the victims,” Zimmersaid, adding that she saw “a boylaying on the floor with his facedown,” and a girl with “blood allover her arm.” Before the shooterwas apprehended, two people werekilled and 13 were injured. Schoolshootings have become more com-mon in the United States and arejust one reason why, despite anoverall decrease in crime during the1990s and into the 21st century,Americans continue to express con-cerns over public safety.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEIn 1968, opinion polls reported thatfor the first time, Americans calledcrime the nation’s single worstproblem. Since then, crime hasremained high on the list ofnational problems.

Crime rates generally increasedduring the 1970s, due in part to ris-ing unemployment and inflation,increased drug use, civil unrest, andprotests against the Vietnam War.But in the 1980s, the spread ofcrack cocaine abuse fueled a majorjump in crime. From 1986 to the

Crime and Public SafetyWill tougher gun control laws reduce

the incidence of crime?

History of Crime and Public Safety in the United States

1108

Organized crime thrivesduring Prohibition(page 643).

Second Amendment,protecting right tobear arms, is ratified(page 149).

New York City orga-nizes first full-time,salaried police force(page 471).

Miranda v. Arizona:police must informsuspects of their legalrights (pages 896, 900).

Brady Act aimsto reduce thespread ofhandguns.

Increased drug abusecontributes to risingcrime.

1791 1844 1920s 1966 1980s 1993

School students at John Bartram High School in Philadelphia go through metal detectors asthey enter the school one day after a school shooting.

(NRA), which is opposed to toughergun-control laws, argues that gun-control laws violate this right tobear arms. Others contend that theamendment was not intended toguarantee a right to personalweapons. Rather, its purpose is toprotect the state’s right to maintainmilitary units.

TOUGHER SENTENCESIn addition to looking at hand gunlaws, Americans have sought to bat-tle crime by putting more people inprison. The federal government andmany states recently passed “threestrikes” laws. Under these laws, anyperson found guilty of two previouscrimes receives a stiff sentence oftwenty to thirty years after convic-tion for a third.

While many applaud this get-tough policy, others claim that itsuffers from a serious problem:racial bias. Blacks represent just 12percent of the U.S. population andabout 13 percent of those whoreported using illegal drugs on a

intervene with troubled youthbefore they commit a crime.

CONTINUING EFFORTSDespite what appears to be a safernation, however, many Americanscontinue to worry about crime. Forone thing, gun violence is extreme-ly high. According to the FBI, gunswere used in nearly 67 percent of allhomicides in 2003. In addition,some social scientists contend thatwith a slumping economy a newcrime wave is just over the horizon.Even though the overall murderrate has declined since 1990, crimecontinues to command publicattention. Experts are split over twoissues related to reducing crime fur-ther: gun control and tougher sen-tencing.

GUN CONTROLIn 1993, President Bill Clintonsigned the Brady Act, which calledfor states to place a five-day waitingperiod on the sale of handguns.During that period, police checkthe potential buyer’s background. Ifthey find a criminal record, a gunpermit is denied. However, fouryears later, in June 1997, the BradyAct was substantially weakenedwhen the Supreme Court ruled thatthe federal government could notforce state or local officials to runbackground checks on potentialbuyers of handguns.

At the center of the gun-controlissue lies a long-standing constitu-tional debate. The Second Amend-ment to the Constitution states this:“A well-regulated militia, being nec-essary to the security of a free state,the right of the people to keep andbear arms shall not be infringed.”The National Rifle Association

As the 21st

century begins,

Americans find

themselves

grappling with

new forms of

violent crime.

Epilogue 1109

Republicans includetougher crime laws intheir Contract withAmerica (page 1070).

Supreme Court rulesthat certain provisionsof the Brady Act areunconstitutional.

On September 11,terrorist attacks inNew York and at thePentagon kill thousands.

2 students kill 13 andthen themselves atColumbine High Schoolin Colorado (page 1068).

1994 1997 1999 2001

PREDICTING EFFECTSWhat methods do you think thenation will employ to more effectivelyprevent terrorist attacks?

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutCrime and Public Safety.

monthly basis. Yet three-quartersof all prison sentences for posses-sion of drugs involve AfricanAmericans. Many civil rights groupssay that such differential treatmentmust end.

NEW CHALLENGESAs the 21st century begins,Americans face a number of newchallenges. Deadly school shoot-ings have brought attention to theissue of youth violence, and violentcrime in America’s cities remains anational concern. But the greatestchallenge to public safety may bethe renewed threat of terrorism.During the mid-1990s, a series ofbombings signaled a disturbingnew era of terrorism in America.The bombing of the World TradeCenter in 1993, the 1995 OklahomaCity bombing, and the bombing atAtlanta’s Centennial Park in 1996all contributed to a growing senseof public vulnerability.

Following the events ofSeptember 11, 2001, in OctoberPresident Bush signed into law newanti-terrorism measures. These lawsgreatly increased the authority oflocal, state, and federal law enforce-ment agencies to obtain and toshare information about anyoneliving in the United States, but drewsevere criticism for intruding onpersonal privacy.

It now appears that Americanswill be struggling to balance theneed for domestic security againstits costs—in terms of privacy, con-venience, and dollars—well intothe 21st century.

IMPROVING QUALITY

People have offered many ideas onhow to improve schools. Some crit-ics say that lack of discipline is amajor problem. Others point to thedisparity in technology betweenwealthy and poor schools. Duringhis presidency, Bill Clinton calledfor all schools in the country to beconnected to the Internet and itsvast supply of information.

Another reform receiving sup-port is the creation of charterschools. In this plan, certain schoolsreceive a charter, or contract, from alocal school district, a state educa-tion department, or a university.Charter schools promise innova-tions in education. In return for free-dom to operate as they choose, char-ter schools promise to increase stu-dents’ achievement levels. By April2005, about 3,400 such schools werein place in approximately 40 states.

Some school reformers favorthe voucher system, in which statesissue a certificate to parents, whothen use it to pay for their child’seducation at a school of theirchoice. The school exchanges thevoucher for payment from the gov-ernment. Supporters of the vouchersystem believe that parents willseek schools that provide higher-quality education. Public schoolswill then be forced to compete withprivate and parochial schools, andwith one another. The competitionshould increase the overall qualityof education, supporters argue.

suburban schools and inner-cityschools. Many students in innercities attended schools that werehoused in decaying buildings andthat had dated instructional materi-als. On the other hand, students inthe suburbs enjoyed new facilitiesand equipment. In both the innercity and the suburbs, violence anddrugs have raised issues of safety.

KEY ISSUESThe debate over public educationhas focused on three key issues.First is the question of how tochange schools to improve the

quality of education. Second is theissue of school financing. Shoulddifferent school systems in a statereceive equal funding? The thirdissue has to do with affirmativeaction—programs intended to rem-edy past discrimination.

In the winter of 2001, PaulVallas, former head of theChicago public school system,

received some discouraging news. Athree-year study found “little signifi-cant change” in the city’s ailing pub-lic high schools—despite six years ofintense reform efforts. “The issue isthat the problem is tougher than wethought it was,” the study reported,“and we have to find more intenseways of improving what we’ve beendoing.” In response to the study,Vallas echoed those sentiments. “Westill have a long way to go,” he said.The plight of Chicago’s publicschools highlights the nation’s ongo-ing struggle to improve education.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEFrom the earliest days of the nation,American leaders have stressed theimportance of education. In the19th century, reformers helpedestablish a system of government-supported public schools. By 1900,almost three-quarters of all eight- tofourteen-year-olds attended school.Even with these advances, somegroups suffered. Public secondaryeducation failed to reach mostAfrican Americans in the early 20thcentury. Not until 1954, with theSupreme Court decision Brown v.Board of Education of Topeka, did fed-eral court decisions call for an endto separate—and usually inferior—schools for African Americans.

By the 1960s, the nation’sschools wrestled with the problemof a rising discrepancy between

Issues in EducationHow can a country guarantee equal education for all?

History of Education in the United States

1110

African Americans whohad been slaves begin tocreate and attend schools(pages 388, 490–491).

Emma Willard opensTroy Female Seminary,an academic schoolfor girls (page 256).

Horace Mann begins thepush to spread publiceducation (page 488).

Federal governmentbegins providing aidto public schools(page 895).

Brown v. Board ofEducation finds segregat-ed schools unconstitu-tional (pages 914–915).

1821 1837 1865 1954 1965

From the earliest

days of the

nation, American

leaders have

stressed the

importance of

education.

but also said that institu-tions could use race as onefactor among others indetermining admission toa college.

On January 8, 2002,President Bush signed intolaw his education pro-gram, No Child LeftBehind. A cornerstone ofthe program is account-ability for student perfor-mance with nationalannual reading and mathassessments in grades 3through 8. The lawrequired states to report

how many students performed ateach of four levels: failure, basic,proficient, and advanced. Schoolsthat failed to show enough progresscould lose students to other schools,be forced to change staff, or even beclosed down.

In 2006, the Center forEducation Policy studied the law’seffects. The study reported thatachievement on state tests was ris-ing. Critics claimed that schoolswere neglecting subjects other thanmath and reading and that teachersspent too much time on test prepa-ration instead of fully teaching theirsubjects. Clearly, debate over educa-tion reform will continue.

AFFIRMATIVE ACTIONMany Americans support the idea ofprograms that give women andminorities greater educational andworkplace opportunities. At thesame time, a large majority disap-prove of quotas, the setting aside ofa certain number of jobs or collegeadmissions for members of thesegroups.

This point became the focus ofa court case challenging affirmativeaction. In the 1970s, Allan Bakkehad twice been rejected by the med-ical school at the University ofCalifornia, Davis, which insteadadmitted a number of minority stu-dents who had lower grades and testscores. Bakke argued that his rightshad been denied. The SupremeCourt, in Regents of the University ofCalifornia v. Bakke (1978), ruled thatthe school had to admit Bakke—

During his run for officein 2000, PresidentGeorge W. Bush voicedsupport for vouchers. “Idon’t know whether ornot the voucher systemis a panacea,” he said,“but I’m willing to give ita shot to determinewhether it makes sense.”

FINANCINGEDUCATION

In most states, schoolfunding relies on localproperty taxes—taxespaid on the value of realestate in a town or city.When schools are fund-ed primarily by propertytaxes, however, schoolsin poorer areas receiveless money than those inwealthier communities.According to the magazineWashington Monthly, one New Jerseytown spends $13,394 per pupil onschooling. Another town just fivemiles away spends only $7,889.Court cases have raised legal chal-lenges to unequal school funding inmore than 20 states.

In 1993, Michigan votersapproved a plan that abandonedreliance on local property taxes asthe basis of school funding. Nowschools get their money from asmaller state-controlled propertytax, an increased sales tax on con-sumer purchases, and increasedtaxes on purchases of such items ascigarettes and alcohol. Because thestate sets property tax rates andmonitors its school systems’ bud-gets, it can even out inequalities.

Epilogue 1111

A federal commissionreport A Nation at Riskseverely criticizes publiceducation (page 1047).

Education summitissues Goals 2000.

Number of charterschools in Americareaches roughly3,400.

California voters banaffirmative action ineducation and otherareas.

1983 1989 1996 2005

Jessica Riley, a hearing-impaired volunteer teacher,helps a hearing-impairedsecond grader with hisreading.

PREDICTING EFFECTSWhat do you think will be the mostimportant education issue the countrywill face in the coming years? Why?

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutIssues in Education.

computer-science graduates andprofessors used the system.

At about this time a digitalrevolution arose as thousands ofindustries across the country beganusing computers to run their busi-nesses, and millions of Americansbought personal computers fortheir homes. With so many com-puters suddenly in use, NSFNETsteadily grew into the large andcrowded Internet, which includesthe World Wide Web.

THE COMPUTER REVOLUTIONThe numbers alone demonstrate theinfluence of computer technologyon modern life. By 2007, nearly 70percent of Americans were loggingonto the Internet either at home orat work, and close to 66 percent ofU.S. households owned at least onepersonal computer. What’s more,nearly every business in the nation,from hospitals to accounting firmsand airports, has implemented com-puter systems to handle many of itsdaily operations.

Many observers credit com-puter technology with driving thenation’s astonishing economicgrowth during the 1990s. Withcomputers allowing employees innearly every field to perform theirjobs more quickly and easily,worker productivity and outputincreased—a major reason for thedecade-long boom.

of inexpensive personal computershas made it possible for ordinaryfamilies to use the latest technology.

THE INTERNETA very important component ofcomputer use today is the Internet, aworldwide computer network. In the1960s, the Department of Defensebegan to network its computers inorder to protect its ability to launchnuclear missiles following a fearedSoviet attack. Then in the late 1980s,the National Science Foundationcreated its own network, NSFNET,and allowed anyone to access it.However, only a small group of

On a spring day in 1997,12-year-old Sean Reddenhad just logged onto the

Internet in his home in Denton,Texas, when he encountered a star-tling message: “Would someonehelp me?” The plea turned out to bea distress call from an Internet usernearly 7,000 miles away in Finland.The person had suffered an asth-matic attack that left her barely ableto breathe. After obtaining moreinformation from the women,Redden contacted his local police.They in turn alerted Finnish author-ities, who located the women andrushed her to medical care at a near-by hospital. This digital rescue is justone example of the power and reachof the Internet, which has dramati-cally changed American society likenothing else in recent history.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEIn the 1940s, when computers firstcame into use, they took up hugerooms and required fans or elabo-rate air-conditioning systems tocool the parts that provided themwith power. In the years since, theparts that power computers havebecome miniaturized and have beenmade much more powerful. Today,not only can personal computersperform more operations morequickly than the first giant comput-ers did, but they are also affordablefor many people. The development

The CommunicationsRevolution

Can information on the Internet be both reliable and accessible?

History of the Communications Revolution

1112

First browser, or softwarefor accessing the WorldWide Web, developed.

U.S. Department ofDefense createsARPANET.

Three million peopleworldwide use theInternet.

1969 1991 1994 1996

Many observers

credit computer

technology

with driving

the nation’s

astonishing

economic growthduring the 1990s.

Congress passes Telecommunications Act,allowing companies to engage in a varietyof communications endeavors (page 1084).

recipients and homeless people. InLaGrange, Georgia, the mayorhelped the local cable company byendorsing a deal to give freeInternet access for one year to allthe town’s residents who sign up forbasic cable. Meanwhile, libraries,schools, and senior centers providefree access. A number of proposalsto provide people with greater accessto computers and training are work-ing their way through the federaland various state governments.

THE FUTUREAs the 21st century begins, the com-puter revolution shows no sign ofslowing. The digital technology thathas so transformed the nation con-tinues to improve. As the computerage rolls on, Americans and the restof the world most likely will faceexciting new opportunities.

year. What concerns officials evenmore is the growing possibility of“cyberterrorism”—hackers stealingor altering vital military informa-tion such as nuclear missile codes.

Meanwhile, a large number ofAmericans worry about the growing“digital divide,” the notion thatcomputer technology remains out ofreach for many of the nation’s poor.According to recent statistics, nearly92 percent of households earning$75,000 or more owned a computer,compared with only about 42 per-cent of households earning between$15,000 and $25,000. Many fearthat poor families unable to pur-chase computers are falling even fur-ther behind in a country wherecomputer skills are fast becoming anecessity.

CLOSING THE GAPActually, the nation is working toclose the gap. In San José, California,for example, officials were able toinvest $90,000 in a program toteach computer skills to welfare

EVERYDAY USESComputer technology not only hasimproved how Americans work, butalso has dramatically altered howthey live. Millions of citizens nowbuy everything from flowers tobooks to stock online. In 2005, thenation spent over $93 billion inelectronic transactions, also knownas e-commerce.

While Americans once commu-nicated strictly by phone or letter,they now talk to each other moreand more through their computers.Many teenagers spend several hoursa day on “social networking” web-sites. Computers have also affectedthe way Americans learn. In 2002,92 percent of public school class-rooms had Internet access, up 15percent from 2000. A growingnumber of universities offer classesand even complete degree pro-grams wholly over the Internet.

HIGH-TECH CHALLENGESFor all the benefits and opportuni-ties it has brought, computer tech-nology also has created its own setof challenges. There are few lawsand regulations governing theInternet. Thus, while it is a treasuretrove of useful information, theWorld Wide Web also has become acenter for the dissemination ofpornographic and hate material.

The growth of computers alsohas led to the growth of “cyber-crime.” Computer vandals, knowncommonly as hackers, engage ineverything from the theft of socialsecurity numbers and other vitalpersonal information to the dis-abling of entire computer systems.The Federal Bureau of Investigationestimates that cybercrime costsAmericans more than $10 billion a

Epilogue 1113

Over 200 million peoplearound the world use theInternet.

1999 2001 2006

College seniorDemetress Robertsuses a computerprogram to teachLatino Outreachstudent AngelLeonardo aboutfractions.

PREDICTING EFFECTSWhat do you think will be a newbreakthrough and a new challengefor Americans in the next decade ofthe Computer Age?

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutThe Communications Revolution.First full-service Internet-

only bank opensNumber of Internetdomains surpasses400 million.

need to protect patients’ rights andthe need to expand health coverageto the ranks of the uninsured.

SOARING DRUG COSTSWhen Medicare began in 1965, thecost of prescription drugs was smallcompared with that of hospitalstays and doctors’ visits. But withthe development of new medicinesand treatments for heart disease,arthritis, and other chronic condi-tions, drugs became the fastest-growing component of health-carespending. About 40 percent ofpeople on Medicare were without

ability Act, passed in 1996,removed that concern. It requiredinsurers to provide coverage to allnew employees who had had healthinsurance before changing jobs.

HEALTH CARE REFORMHealth care continued to be a hottopic during the 2000 presidentialcampaign and beyond. One of theissues up for debate was the needfor prescription-drug coverage forthe elderly, a reform many thoughtshould be addressed as part of anoverhaul of the Medicare system.Also high on the agenda were the

To pay for the medicine sheneeds, 79-year-old WinifredSkinner walks the streets of

Des Moines every day collectingcans. “I don’t want to ask for hand-outs. I want to earn it,” she insists.The soaring cost of prescriptiondrugs—especially among the elderly—is just one of the key issues facingAmerican health care today.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVENational health insurance forAmericans was first proposed byPresident Harry S. Truman in 1949,but Congress failed to approve it. Ittook the legislative skill of PresidentLyndon B. Johnson to enact Medi-care in 1965. The program coveredmost of the cost of medical care forpeople age 65 and above.

By the 1990s, Medicare was tak-ing an increasing share of federalspending. In hopes of controllingcosts and providing universal cov-erage, President Clinton proposed acomplex plan. However, lobbyingby doctors and private insurers andthe public’s mistrust of big govern-ment caused Congress to defeatClinton’s plan in 1994.

Meanwhile, many Americanswere afraid they would be deniedhealth insurance because of pre-existing conditions—medical con-ditions that are present when a per-son applies for coverage. The HealthInsurance Portability and Account-

Curing theHealth Care System

How should medical coverage for the uninsured be funded?

History of Health Care in the United States

1114

President Johnsonand Congress enactMedicare and Medicaidinto law (page 896).

Truman introduces a bill fornational health insurancethat is ultimately rejectedby Congress (page 845).

Department of Health,Education, and Welfareis established.

President Nixonincreases funding forMedicare and Medicaid(pages 1001–1002).

AIDS (Acquired ImmuneDeficiency Syndrome) isfirst identified (page 1046).

1949 1953 1965 1970s 1981

Irene Holmes holds her son while technician Roberta Montoya takes a blood sampleat the Sandia Health Center.

extensive, totaling 15.7 percent ofAmericans in 2004.

Some 8 million of the unin-sured are children. In 1997, thefederal government developedthe State Children’s HealthInsurance Program (SCHIP). SCHIPprovides funding to states so thatthey can offer health coverage tochildren of low-income people whoearn too much to qualify forMedicaid (which covers the cost ofmedical care for the poor). By theend of 2003, more than 4 millionchildren had benefited from theprogram. However, financial stressled a number of states to restrictMedicaid and SCHIP enrollment.

In 2003, Congress establishedHealth Savings Accounts (HSAs) aspart of the MMA legislation. HSAswere created to help Americanssave for medical expenses. To beeligible, individuals were requiredto have a high-deductible healthinsurance plan.

In the first session of the 110thCongress, about a dozen health carereform bills were introduced.Proposals included plans to• create a government-adminis-

tered national health insurance• provide government funding for

universal health insurancethrough private companies

• reauthorize and expand SCHIP.The legislation also proposed a vari-ety of new or increased taxes to sup-port these plans. Still unknown iswhether Congress and the publicwill be willing to accept these costs.

Today, more than three workerspay taxes for every person whoreceives Medicare, while in 2035,only two workers will be available todo the job. Workers’ taxes will goup—especially if health costs rise.Meanwhile, according to one esti-mate, Medicare pays less than half ofits beneficiaries’ medical expenses.

What is to be done? Among theapproaches that have been proposedare placing more restrictions onMedicare benefits, raising the age ofeligibility, or increasing the share tobe paid by the elderly. MichaelTanner of the Cato Institute favorsraising the age rather than the pre-mium: “premiums already representa significant burden for many elder-ly Americans. . . . Any major increase. . . risk[s] pushing many of theelderly into poverty.”

THE UNINSURED MILLIONSThe number of people withouthealth insurance continues to be

prescription-drug coverage. Manyelderly citizens were paying wellover $1,000 a year out of pocket formedicine—or else did without.

During the 2000 campaign, theDemocrats proposed a drug benefitthrough Medicare, while Republicanswanted to give seniors the option tochoose their own insurance plans,subsidized by the federal govern-ment. Following President GeorgeW. Bush’s election, Congress passedthe Medicare Prescription Drug,Improvement, and ModernizationAct of 2003 (MMA). The law provid-ed access to drug coverage for elder-ly and disabled people on Medicare,beginning in 2006.

Meanwhile, looming large onthe horizon was one of the toughestquestions facing policymakers in theearly 21st century: whether thegovernment should reform Medicareas a whole.

THE FATE OF MEDICAREIf nothing changes, Medicare willstart running out of money by 2010and is expected to go bankrupt in2025. The reasons are rising costsand demographic changes.

Americans are living longernow than they were in 1965—aboutseven years longer on average. As aresult, seniors form a greater pro-portion of the population thanbefore. While rising numbers ofelderly drive up the cost ofMedicare, the revenues targeted topay for it are expected to go down.As the population ages, fewer peo-ple will work and pay the taxes thatfund Medicare. Additionally, elder-ly persons as a group tend to havehigher medical costs. For instance,the elderly make up 9% of Medicaidrecipients but account for 26% ofits medical costs.

“Health care is

too important for

any modern

society to permit

many of its

citizens to go

without it.”HENRY J. AARON, FORMER DIRECTOR,

BROOKINGS ECONOMIC STUDIES PROGRAM

Epilogue 1115

The State Children’sHealth InsuranceProgram (SCHIP) isenacted.

Congress passes HealthInsurance Portabilityand Accountability Act(HIPAA).

1996 1997 2001

PREDICTING EFFECTSDo you think that more or fewerAmericans will receive health carecoverage ten years from now?Explain why you think so.

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutCuring the Health Care System.Congress extends the

Medical Savings Accountspilot program through 2002as "Archer MSAs."

share of the poor, and their num-bers are growing rapidly for manyethnic groups. The poverty rateamong children in the United Statesis higher than that in any otherWestern industrialized nation.

Like Jim in Boston, many ofthe poor are homeless. Duringthe 1980s, cuts in welfare and foodstamp benefits brought the problemof homelessness to national atten-tion. According to the NationalAlliance to End Homelessness(NAEH), about 750,000 Americansare without shelter on any givennight.

Many experts on the homelessbelieve that the lack of housing issimply a symptom of larger prob-lems. These include unemploy-ment, low-wage jobs, and highhousing costs, and in some cases,personal problems such as sub-stance abuse or mental illness.

SOME CAUSES OF POVERTYExperts agree that there are numer-ous causes of poverty. Lack of skillskeeps many welfare recipients fromfinding or keeping jobs. They needmore than job training, manyobservers insist, they also needtraining in work habits.

Another factor that holds backincreased employment is limitedaccess to child care. EconomistDavid Gordon related the results ofa study of mothers who received

ity did not last. In the 1960s,President Lyndon B. Johnson de-clared “unconditional war on pover-ty” as his administration expandededucation, training, and financialaid for the poor. The proportion ofpeople living below the povertylevel—the minimum income neces-sary to provide basic living stan-dards—fell from 20 percent in1962 to only 11 percent in 1973.However, economic hard timesreappeared in the early 1980s andthe poverty rate began to rise. In2003, 35.9 million Americans livedbelow the poverty line—which thatyear was marked by an annualincome of $18,810 or less for a fam-ily of four.

AMERICANS IN POVERTYMany Americans who live in pover-ty are employed. Known as theworking poor, they hold low-wagejobs with few benefits and almostnever any health insurance.Children also account for a major

Jim, a 55-year-old painter bytrade, retreats each night to aBoston homeless shelter. He

spends his days engaging in anywork he can find—but it’s neverenough to provide him with a roofover his head. Too many of the jobsavailable, he says, “pay only theminimum wage or a bit higher, andthey cannot cover the rent and otherbills.” Jim, who says his dream is to“get a steady job, find an apart-ment, and settle down,” insists thathe never imagined he would findhimself homeless. “I never thoughtit could happen to me,” he says. Jimis just one of more than 32 millioncitizens considered poor in a nationthat continues to cope with thechallenge of eradicating poverty.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVESome part of the American popula-tion has faced poverty since the“starving time” at Jamestown dur-ing the winter of 1609–1610. In the20th century, poverty was mostwidespread during the GreatDepression of the 1930s. That eco-nomic disaster led to several newgovernment programs such as the1935 Social Security Act, which cre-ated a pension fund for retired peo-ple over age 65 and offered govern-ment aid to poor people for thefirst time.

Though the Depression endedwith World War II, postwar prosper-

Breaking the Cycleof Poverty

Who has the responsibility for helping the poor?

1116

Many of those

Americans who

live in poverty

are employed.

History of the Cycle of Poverty in the United States

Michael Harrington’s TheOther America shocks thenation by revealing extentof poverty (page 888).

High unemployment in thewake of the panic of 1893leaves thousands homeless(pages 427–428).

Social Security Act ispassed; governmentgives aid to poor for firsttime (pages 698, 707).

President Johnsonannounces War onPoverty (page 894).

1894 1935 1962 1964

Another factor contributing topoverty has been discriminationagainst racial minorities. Currentstatistics highlight how much moreprevalent poverty is among minori-ties. In 2003, the poverty rate amongwhites was 8.2 percent, while amongHispanics and African Americans itwas 22.5 percent and 24.4 percent,respectively.

FEDERAL WELFARE REFORMAs the nation continued to strugglewith poverty and homelessness, thecry for welfare reform grew louder.Critics of the system argued thatproviding financial aid to the poorgave them little incentive to bettertheir lives and thus helped to createa culture of poverty. In 1996, theRepublican Congress and PresidentClinton signed a bill—the PersonalResponsibility and Work Oppor-tunity Reconciliation Act—that cutmore than $55 billion in welfarespending over six years and put a

welfare. They could eke out a living,he found, by combining paid workand some outside support with wel-fare payments and food stamps.But, Gordon asked, suppose one ofthese mothers left welfare and tooka full-time minimum-wage job. “[If]she cannot find free child care andhas to pay the going rate, her stan-dard of living . . . would decline by20 percent.” To help meet the needfor child care, a 1996 federal welfarelaw included $3.5 billion in fund-ing for day care.

For millions of Americans, theU.S. public education system hasfailed to provide the tools necessaryfor climbing out of poverty. AnneLewis, an education writer, pointsout that “three-fourths of all wel-fare/food stamp recipients performat the lowest levels of literacy.” Inturn, she notes, low levels of litera-cy generally lead to low employ-ment rates and lower wages.

Epilogue 1117

Nixon’s welfare reformbill—the Family Assist-ance Plan—dies in theSenate (page 1001).

Congress passes Per-sonal Responsibility andWork Opportunity Recon-ciliation Act (page 1068).

President Bushpushes for CharitableChoice Act, passedin the House in July.

Welfare benefits andfood stamps are cutunder President Reagan(page 1041).

1970 1980s 1996 2001

Amherst College freshmen inMassachusetts hoe a field for afarm run by a local food bank in aschool outreach community-serviceproject.

five-year limit on how long peoplecould receive welfare payments. Inaddition, the bill cut benefits torecipients who had not found a jobwithin two years.

Supporters cheered the reforms,claiming that they transformed asystem from one that fosters depen-dence to one that encourages self-reliance. Opponents of the lawaccused the federal government ofturning its back on the poor—espe-cially children.

Both proponents and critics ofthe bill agreed on one thing: thelaw’s success depended on puttingwelfare recipients to work. Thefederal government offered threeincentives to encourage businessesto hire people from the welfarerolls: tax credits for employers whohire welfare recipients, wage subsi-dies, and establishment of enter-prise zones, which provide taxbreaks to companies that locate ineconomically depressed areas.

The 2002 welfare reauthoriza-tion bill enacted President Bush’scalls for funding religious and othervolunteer organizations to assumemore responsibility for the needy,time limits on welfare benefits, andincreased work requirements. Fiveyears later, it appeared that it wouldstill be some years before anyonecan say whether or not the presi-dent’s or other proposed welfarereforms break the cycle of poverty.

PREDICTING EFFECTSWhat can be done to provide afford-able child care to help the workingpoor?

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutBreaking the Cycle of Poverty.

than in the past. Third, the numberof workers paying into SocialSecurity per beneficiary will dropwhen the boomers start retiring.

Currently, Social Security col-lects more in taxes than it pays inbenefits. The extra goes into a “trustfund” that is invested. Around theyear 2017 the program will beginpaying out more to beneficiariesthan it takes in from the payroll tax.The program will begin to rely onthe Social Security trust fund to payretirees. If that trend continues, afterabout the year 2052, the fund will

population is aging. This aging pop-ulation will put a severe financialstrain on these programs.

SOCIAL SECURITYFUNDING

Social Security’s problem can beattributed to a few important fac-tors. First, when the baby boomers(those born between 1946 and 1964)retire, their huge numbers—about70 million by the year 2020—mayoverburden the entitlement pro-grams. Second, Americans now livelonger, so an individual’s share ofbenefits from the program is greater

Economist Lester Thurowgives new meaning to theterm generation gap. “In the

years ahead, class warfare is apt tobe redefined as the young againstthe old, rather than the poor againstthe rich,” he warns. Economics maybecome a major issue dividing gen-erations, as young workers shoulderthe costs of Social Security, Medicare,and Medicaid—the three majorentitlement programs funded bythe federal government.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEIn the 1935 Social Security Act, orFICA, the government promised topay a pension to older Americans,funded by a tax on workers andemployers. At that time, PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt said thatSocial Security was not intended toprovide all of an individual’s retire-ment income, but it was a base onwhich workers would be able tobuild with private pension funds.

In 1965, new laws extendedSocial Security support. In addition,the government assumed mosthealth care costs for the elderlythrough the Medicare program andfor the poor through Medicaid.These programs are called entitle-ments because the recipients areentitled by law to the benefits.

Social Security, Medicare, andMedicaid have received a lot ofattention because the United States

Tough Choices AboutSocial Security

How can Social Security be reformed so thatit will have enough money to pay retirees?

History of Entitlements in the United States

1118

President Roosevelt signsSocial Security Act(page 707).

Changes to SocialSecurity allow reducedbenefits at earlyretirement—age 62.

President Johnsonsigns Medicare andMedicaid into law(page 896).

President Nixonincreases SocialSecurity payments(pages 901–902).

Congress includescost-of-living adjust-ments for SocialSecurity benefits.

1935 1961 1965 1970s 1975

Citizens in favor of protecting Social Security rally on the U.S. Capitol grounds.

Americans to support his privati-zation plan.

Meanwhile, the proposal drewits share of critics. Among themwere advocates for disabled workersand their families—a group that in2003 made up 12 percent ofall Social Security beneficiaries.According to a report from theGeneral Accounting Office, underPresident Bush’s plan a worker whobecame disabled and retired at theage of 45, for example, wouldreceive 4 percent to 18 percent lessin benefits.

Some women’s groups alsoopposed privatization. They saidthat it would jeopardize the guaran-tee of lifetime, inflation-adjustedbenefits that the current SocialSecurity system provides. Becausewomen earn less than men, theywould have less to invest, and theirreturns would be lower.

Still others were concernedabout the risk involved in relying ona volatile stock market. They ques-tioned whether the funds in whichpeople would invest their SocialSecurity taxes would be secure.

In the end, Bush could not gar-ner enough support for his plan:Congress did not want to take on therisk of changing something that somany people depended on and thathad worked so well for so long. So thefunding problem remains unsolved.

• Invest Funds in the StockMarket Some people suggestthat the government shouldinvest some of Social Securitymoney in the stock market. Theyassume that stocks will rise, mak-ing the system healthier.

• Allow Individual InvestingOthers agree with allowing thefunds to be invested but wantindividuals to control where theirown funds are invested.

THE FUTURE OF THE FUNDSDuring the 2000 presidential elec-tion, exit polls found that some 57percent of Americans supportedthe “privatization” approach out-lined by President Bush during hiscampaign: allow workers to diverta portion of their Social Securitytaxes into individual stock-marketaccounts. During the 2004 elec-tion campaign and following theelection, President Bush contin-ued his attempts to persuade

pay retirees only 75 percent of thebenefits due to them.

Most experts recommendreform, and Americans have lis-tened. One poll found that 81 per-cent of Americans under 40 believethat the Social Security programneeds to be changed to guaranteeits financial stability.

OPTIONS FOR CHANGEA number of plans for reformingSocial Security have been proposed.These different views have becomethe main options being debated inCongress and around the country.

• Raise Social Security TaxesSome people have suggested smalltax hikes, arguing that since peo-ple’s incomes are expected to rise,they will be able to afford anincrease. As of 2005, only the first$90,000 of any individual’sincome is subject to FICA tax.Some people have suggested thatthose with higher incomes are notpaying their fair share.

• Cut Benefits Some argue thatbenefits should be reduced byending automatic cost-of-livingadjustments or lowering pay-ments made to retirees who earnover a certain amount of moneyeach year. These wealthier people,they say, do not need to receivehigher payments.

• Raise the Retirement AgeBecause people can now workproductively later in life thanthey used to, some propose rais-ing the retirement age. That willreduce the payments made andincrease tax receipts. Currently,the retirement age is set toincrease to age 66 by 2009 andthen to age 67 by 2027.

Social Security,

Medicare, and

Medicaid have

received much

attention

because the

U.S. populationis aging.

Epilogue 1119

Social Security isreformed to providefinancial stability formany years.

President-Elect Bush proposes aplan to divert a portion of SocialSecurity tax into individual stock-market accounts.

President Clinton appointsAdvisory Council on SocialSecurity to report on system’sfinancial health.

1983 1994 2000

PREDICTING EFFECTSHow would the economy be bothhelped and hurt if Social Securitybenefits were cut?

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutTough Choices About Social Security.

In the academic world, womenare better represented than everbefore. In 2002–2003, womenreceived a record number—nearly 47percent—of all doctorate degreesissued by universities. Womenearned an even higher percentage—58—of all degrees.

For many women, job successinvolved getting the right creden-tials and targeting a growth industry.A 2000 survey by the women’s advo-cacy group Catalyst found that 91percent of women with MBAdegrees working in informationtechnology reported high satisfac-tion with their current jobs, com-pared with only 82 percent of theirmale counterparts. “This translatesinto opportunity for women in thisgrowing industry,” said SheilaWellington, president of Catalyst.

MONEY AND UPWARD MOBILITYDespite these positive signs, the keyissues of unequal pay and unequalrepresentation remain. Women arestill making less than their malecounterparts—averaging only 77cents for every dollar earned by men.According to the NationalCommittee on Pay Equity, there area variety of reasons for this discrep-ancy: women are often socialized toaim toward lower-paying jobs, oftenhave limited expectations about

Some women who pursuecareers in business, government, orother organizations feel that a glassceiling limits their progress. It is saidto be glass because it is an invisiblebarrier that keeps women andminorities from attaining promotionabove a certain level. Its invisibilitymakes it difficult to combat.

POSITIVE TRENDSWomen have made great strides inrecent decades. In 2002, they filledhalf of all jobs in managerial andprofessional specialty areas. Womenhave also been entering new fields,including construction work andequipment repair.

Thirty-two years after enter-ing a management trainingprogram at Boston’s Federal

Reserve Bank, Cathy Minehan—nowthe bank’s president—is one of aselect group of female executiveswho hold 3.3 percent of the nation’shighest-paying jobs. “A critical ele-ment in making it to the top is beingin the pipeline to do so, . . .” saysMinehan. “Aside from . . . [that,]they have to believe they can makeit. . . . It is hard for women orminorities to believe they canprogress if they cannot look up andsee faces like their own at the top.”

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEIn 1961, President John F. Kennedynamed a commission to study thestatus of women in the workplace.Its report revealed that employerspaid women less than men for equalwork. The report also said thatwomen were rarely promoted to toppositions in their fields.

Almost 40 years later, the U.S.Census Bureau found that morewomen than ever before worked out-side the home—about 60 percent.Women made up 47 percent of theAmerican work force. Yet in 2005they held only 16.4 percent of themost senior jobs according to a sam-pling of the Fortune 500, thenation’s 500 largest companies.

Women in theWork Force

Will the American workplace grantmen and women equal opportunities?

History of Women at Work in the United States

1120

Average pay for womenworkers is $269 a year,compared with $498for men.

Women working inLowell, Massachusetts,textile mills strike(pages 213, 450–451).

1 out of 10 single whitewomen works outside thehome, earning half the payof men (pages 442, 450).

One out of five womenworks outside the home(pages 519–520).

Women enter newprofessions but battleunequal wages(page 648).

1834 1860 1899 1900 1920s

Women are still

making less

than their male

counterparts—

averaging only

80 cents forevery dollar.

firms. Notes Dixie Junk, owner ofJunk Architects in Kansas City, “It’smore than having a business—youget to create the culture you want.”

IT PAYS TO BE FLEXIBLEAnother area of change affectingwomen in the work force has beenan increasing number of options forflexible work arrangements, such aspart-time work and telecommutingopportunities. In 2004, 71 percentof companies surveyed had formalpolicies or guidelines for some typeof flexible work arrangement.

A Catalyst study of 24 womenwho first used flexible work arrange-ments more than a decade agofound that all of them now heldmid- and senior-level positions, andmore than half had been promotedin the last 10 years. Says MarciaBrumit Kropf, vice-president ofresearch and information services,“Findings from this report suggestthat even though working mothersmay reduce career involvement for aperiod of time—with the supportof the right company—careeradvancement does not have toget sidelined.”

In general, women still have theprimary responsibility for child carein U.S. society. Women without flex-ible work arrangements must findothers to care for their children atleast part of the day. About 65 per-cent of mothers with children underthe age of 6 and 80 percent of moth-ers with children between the ages of6 and 13 work. Many people believethat the government should subsi-dize child-care costs.

nication, and women’s lack of signif-icant management experience.

On the other hand, the respon-dents suggested some approachesthat had helped them succeed in thecorporate world: consistently exceedexpectations, develop a style withwhich managers are comfortable,seek out difficult assignments, andhave an influential mentor.

STRIKING OUT ON THEIR OWNMany women who are frustrated bythe corporate environment at theirexisting companies are choosing tostart their own business. Accordingto the center for Women’s BusinessResearch, in 2004 10.6 millionfirms were at least 50 percentowned by women—and constitutedthe fastest-growing sector of all U.S.

their leadership potential, and mayhave conflicts between the demandsof work and family life.

In the nation’s most top-leveljobs, men continue to vastly out-number women. As of 2006, womenheaded only ten Fortune 500 com-panies. Very few women whobecame corporate officers held linepositions, jobs with profit-and-lossresponsibility. In 2005, women heldonly 10.6 percent of line positions,while in contrast, men held 89.4 per-cent of them.

Why are women underrepre-sented in the top jobs? In oneCatalyst poll of women executives,blame was placed on three factors:male stereotyping and preconcep-tions of women, women’s exclusionfrom informal networks of commu-

Epilogue 1121

Presidential Commissionon the Status of Womenreports: women are paidless than men (page983).

Women earn 76 centsfor every dollar a manearns.

Women-owned busi-nesses are the fastest-growing sector of theU.S. economy.

20 states beginadjusting pay scalesto equalize pay(page 1049).

1961 1989 1998 2005

U.S. Appeals Court judge Rosemary Barkett (center) delivers the keynote address during aspecial session of Florida’s high court honoring the state’s first 150 female lawyers onJune 15, 2000, in Tallahassee, Florida.

PREDICTING EFFECTSWhat can be done to afford womenthe same opportunities as men?

RESEARCH LINKS

CLASSZONE.COM Visit the links forthe Epilogue to find out more aboutWomen in the Work Force.

they were inflicting on the environ-ment. In the two decades that fol-lowed, Congress created theEnvironmental Protection Agency(EPA) and enacted such measures asthe Clean Air Act, the Clean WaterAct, and the Endangered SpeciesAct—all in an effort to restore thehealth of the country’s naturalresources. And, since 1970, thecountry nearly tripled the size of itsnational park space.

the destruction of the forests.”Roosevelt established the firstwildlife refuge in Florida and addedmore than 150 million acres to thenation’s forest preserves.

The 1960s and 1970s witnesseda resurgence of the conservationmovement. In 1962, marine biolo-gist Rachel Carson published SilentSpring, which warned of the destruc-tive effects of pesticides. The bookawakened Americans to the damage

In 1990, Oregon logger BillHaire hung a new ornament onthe mirror of his truck: a tiny

owl with an arrow through its head.The trinket represented the spottedowl as well as Haire’s feelings aboutthe federal government’s decisionto declare millions of acres of forestoff limits to the logging industry inorder to protect this endangeredspecies of bird.

“If it comes down to my familyor that bird,” said Haire, “that bird’sgoing to suffer.” The battle betweenloggers and environmentalists overthe fate of the spotted owl is justone example of the nation’s on-going struggle to balance conser-vation with industrial progress.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVEConservation, the managementand protection of the earth’sresources, began as a nationalmovement in the United States dur-ing the early 1900s. In the wake ofthe country’s industrial revolution,the federal government enactednumerous measures to protect thenation’s natural surroundings.President Theodore Rooseveltexpressed a particular interest inpreserving America’s forestlands.“Like other men who had thoughtabout the national future at all,” heonce remarked, “I had been grow-ing more and more concerned over

The ConservationControversy

Can the nation balance conservation with economic progress?

History of Conservation in the United States

1122

Rachel Carson publishesSilent Spring (page 897).

President TheodoreRoosevelt establishes thefirst federal wildlife refuge(page 529).

President FranklinRoosevelt creates theCivilian ConservationCorps (page 697).

Congress establishes theEnvironmental ProtectionAgency; Congress passesClean Air Act (page 1028).

Congress passes theEndangered SpeciesAct (page 1028).

1903 1933 1962 1970 1973

Hikers on the Highline Trail in Glacier National Park, northwest Montana