President Barack Obama must not tamper with Social Security. In his recent speech before a joint session of Congress, the president suggested he might fiddle with the program.

"To preserve our long-term fiscal health, we must also address the growing costs in Medicare and Social Security," President Obama stated.

There are other subtle signs of change.

In an article published last month in the New York Times, Obama is described as “eager” to seek a bipartisan solution to the problem. And last week, New York Times conservative columnist David Brooks wrote that White House staffers told him the president was prepared to cut a deal on Social Security.

“He is extremely committed to entitlement reform and is plotting politically feasible ways to reduce Social Security,” Brooks wrote.

All Americans should be concerned with this chatter. Social Security is the government’s guarantee to us that we will have a decent retirement and that our children will be covered in case we get disabled or die.

Every working American has been paying into the system already. To reduce Social Security would be to cheat us out of what we’re owed and betray the promise of a caring country.

African Americans especially should take note. For blacks, Social Security is a “critical program,” according to a 2006 study by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. “African Americans benefit disproportionately from many of Social Security’s features, including a progressive benefit structure and survivors and disability benefits.”

The study also noted that 1 in 19 African-American children receive benefits and the average age for an African-American to receive benefits is 58 years old. This means African-Americans are much more likely than others to become disabled from work and to not even reach retirement age. Social Security provides vital support for them.

The Social Security Administration acknowledges that the program is good for African-Americans. It notes that while African-Americans comprise 13 percent of the population, 21 percent of the children receiving survivor benefits are African-American, according to a fact sheet published by the agency in October 2008. It also shows that among African Americans receiving Social Security, 57 percent of unmarried elderly persons received 90 percent or more of their income from Social Security.

African Americans, due to a history of institutional racism, are less likely than whites to own a 401(k) or an IRA. They possess far less personal wealth than whites. So they are much more reliant on Social Security as a lifeline.

But Social Security is there for all Americans, of whatever race or creed.

All of us benefit from it. And it’s a crucial part of the social contract.

Obama should not violate that contract by tampering with Social Security.

Brian Gilmore, a poet and lawyer, lives in Takoma Park, Md. He can be reached at pmproj [at] progressive [dot] org.