For people who have for been putting their hard-earned money into the system for years, the president's idea would replace their safety net with a risky gamble with no assurance of a stable return of investment.

Because of their low earnings and family obligations, Latinas would not be putting much money into private investment accounts. An average Latina could wind up losing thousands of dollars under this proposal.

There is a need for Social Security reform to ensure its stability, and Congress must act.

Because of my own experience with market fluctuation, I recognize the great risks one takes on investments. This converts the Social Security safety net into a risky proposition many cannot afford to take.

Because Social Security is specifically designed to boost the retirement income of low earners with a progressive benefit formula, the program has played an enormous and necessary role in keeping Latinas out of poverty.

Social Security has been effective for 70 years; prior predictions of its demise have been totally overstated.

The president's claim that Social Security is going broke is misleading at best. The sky is not falling, although there is no doubt that the system needs to be strengthened.