William Penn, 1957 (40. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1957-03-06 / 3. szám
PAGE 4 March 20, 1957. William Penn Journal of the William Penn Fraternal Association OFFICE OF PUBLICATION 7907 West Jefferson Ave. Detroit 17, Michigan PUBLISHED SEMIMONTHLY BY THE William Penn Fraternal Association Managing Editor: COLOMAN REVESZ Editors: JOHN SABO and ALBERT J. STELKOVICS Editor’s Office: 456—442 FOURTH AVENUE PITTSBURGH 19, PA. Telephone: COurt 1-3454 or 1-3455 All artier and changes of address should be sent to the WILLIAM PENN FRATERNAL ASSOCIATION 436—442 FOURTH AVENUE, PITTSBURGH 19, PA. SUBSCRIPTION RATES: United States and Canada ..................................... $1.00 a year Foreign Countries .................................................... $1.50 a year Entered as Second Class Matter at the Post Office at Detroit, Michigan under the Act of March 3, 1879. Pittsburgh Organization Dispels Fears Concerning Hungarian Refugees Since the Hungarian revolution last October. 26,000 Hungarian refugees have entered the United States to seek asylum. Of this number, 600 have become residents of Allegheny County. While most citizens of the County welcome these refugees into the area, the Citizens Coordinating Committee on Hungarian Aid has observed some resentment ,by a few persons towards them. This resentment has been noticed in letters to the newspapers for these principle reasons: 1. The belief that refugees are taking jobs from American citizens. 2. The feeling that they should have remained in Hungary to fight for their freedom. 3. The fear that Communists are among them. 4. The belief that they are receiving too many privileges from our government. The Citizens Coordinating Committee on Hungarian Aid investigated these matters and has come up with facts to dispel such feelings. First of all, no Hungarian refugee has been known to receive a union job so long as there was an unemployed holder of a union card eligible for that job. The jobs which the refugees have been getting have been usually of two types: either highly skilled jobs for which they qualified, such as engineering, or unskilled jobs which are difficult to fill because few people want them. Needless to say the Hungarian people put up a brave battle for freedom that nearly succeeded except for the crushing might of Soviet tanks and troops. Thousands of young men, women and children died in the onslaught. With the end of the revolution came the beginning of purges, not a new thing for Hungarians. Many of them had suffered in concentration camps or had lost friends and relatives to the mysterious regions within Soviet Russia. Most refugees reaching this country would have been the victims of such purges. They were blacklisted and hunted in revenge for their struggle to gain freedom. In escaping to Austria they showed great bravery, for such a trip is full of perils and uncertainties, Hundreds of Hungarians were shot or captured while attempting to escape the clutches of the Soviet police. As far as the possibilities of Communists being among the refugees they are carefully screened by immigration officials before they are permitted to take up residence in this country. To date* only two persons of 26,000 were returned to Europe for security reasons, all others having been approved by the State Department. Refugees coming to this country have been granted free transportation and temporary quarters at Camp Kilmer by our government. Once they are released from Camp they are the responsibility of their sponsors. Few of them, want to be dependent on their sponsors, and as soon as they are capable they are finding jobs to support themselves. The Citizens Coordinating Committee on Hungarian Aid, assisted in discovering these facts by The American Service Institute, a Community Chest agency, points out that, like other residents in the country, the Hungarian refugees become consumers of food, clothing, and other products. The necessary increase in production means a higher standard of living for everybody. They are good people who will serve this country and do all in their power to protect its freedom because they know the price of political suppression. The United States has long been a haven for suppressed peoples, and has grown and flourished in accepting refugees from many nations throughout its history. We should not attempt to stop a system that has made us such a great country. Child’s Social Security Benefit Change The most recent changes in the social security law provide that some adults may qualify for “child’s” insurance benefits. This may seem somewhat unusual but Frank B. Harrington. Manager of the Pittsburgh Downtown Office of the Social Security Administration, explained it this way. The 1956 Amendments to the Social Security Act provides that if a person is so disabled he can not work and if this condition has existed since childhood, he may qualify for a disabled child’s insurance benefit even though he may be middle aged. Since 1940, the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Program has provided for “child’s” benefits. These were paid where the parent was insured under social security when he retired or died and the child was' otherwise qualified. These benefits, however were terminated when the child reached age 18. Now, Mr. Harringtbn pointed out, child’s benefits may be paid to a disabled “child” regardless of his age provided the following conditions are met. First, the child must be so disabled that it is unable to perform any substantial gainful activity and he became so disabled before he reached the age of 18. Secondly, he must be dependent on a parent, step-parent or adopting parent who is now entitled to Old-Age and Survivors Insurance payments or he must have been so dependent on a parent who died after 1939 and was insured for survivors benefits under the social security law at the time of the parent’s death. It is not necessary that the child have a social security account number nor he have any record of work under social security, but he must be unmarried. The new law, the Manager stated, applies both to those children who may have in the past received social security benefits up until the tome they reached age 18 and to those children who never previously received benefits. Inquiries regarding disabled “child’s” benefits should be directed to the Pittsburgh Downtown Office of the Social Security Administration in the Fulton Building, 107 Sixth Street or to the East Liberty Office at 305 Highland Building. THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE WILLIAM PENN FRATERNAL ASSOCIATION announces with profound sorrow the death of MICHAEL PAPP ACKNOWLEDGED MEMBER of the association, who, after many years of faithful service to the Association at BRANCH 214-V, Flint, Michigan, passed away on February 7, 1957. The Board of Directors, in paying final tribute to the memory of our ACKNOWLEDGED Fellow-Member, conveys on behalf of the membership of the William Penn Fraternal Association, its deepest sympathy to the bereaved family.
