Remarks
by
Ricki Helfer
Chairman
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
before the
Greenlining Institute
Economic Development Conference
Los Angeles, CA
September 20, 1996
We are here tonight because of the power of one word -- the word "community." No other idea
-- no other ideal -- has defined who we are -- and who we want to be -- more than community
does. It is embedded in the words: "We, the people . . ." It resonates in the proposition that we
all are "created equal."
Its earliest expression in our history came in 1630, just before the Puritans landed in Salem
Harbor, when their leader, John Winthrop, told them to "delight in each other" because they
were members "of the same body" and urged them to build a "city on a hill" that would
enlighten the world. That thread continues to tie us together more than 350 years later.
Alexis de Tocqueville, in his book Democracy in America, in 1831 described his understanding of
the concept of community in this young country. He observed that a covenant exists among our
people that "they all feel themselves subject to the same weakness and the same dangers; and
their interest, as well as their sympathy, makes it a rule with them to lend each other mutual
assistance when required."
Alexis de Tocqueville was before my time -- and yours, I am sure -- but I met Dr. Martin Luther
King in April of 1967 when I was a senior in college, and I remember well sitting transfixed in
front of the television in 1963 listening to the speech he delivered from the steps of the Lincoln
Memorial. When Martin Luther King dreamed, he dreamed of a "beautiful symphony of
brotherhood" -- a community where, as he said, "black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles,
Protestants and Catholics" join hands to build a better future for us all.
Each one of us has something to offer to the great, unending purpose of building a better
future -- and each one of us deserves a place in the community in return. If a member of the
community is denied the opportunity to make his or her contribution, not only does that person
suffer, but the community suffers as well. We may be in different boats, but we are all afloat on
by
Ricki Helfer
Chairman
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
before the
Greenlining Institute
Economic Development Conference
Los Angeles, CA
September 20, 1996
We are here tonight because of the power of one word -- the word "community." No other idea
-- no other ideal -- has defined who we are -- and who we want to be -- more than community
does. It is embedded in the words: "We, the people . . ." It resonates in the proposition that we
all are "created equal."
Its earliest expression in our history came in 1630, just before the Puritans landed in Salem
Harbor, when their leader, John Winthrop, told them to "delight in each other" because they
were members "of the same body" and urged them to build a "city on a hill" that would
enlighten the world. That thread continues to tie us together more than 350 years later.
Alexis de Tocqueville, in his book Democracy in America, in 1831 described his understanding of
the concept of community in this young country. He observed that a covenant exists among our
people that "they all feel themselves subject to the same weakness and the same dangers; and
their interest, as well as their sympathy, makes it a rule with them to lend each other mutual
assistance when required."
Alexis de Tocqueville was before my time -- and yours, I am sure -- but I met Dr. Martin Luther
King in April of 1967 when I was a senior in college, and I remember well sitting transfixed in
front of the television in 1963 listening to the speech he delivered from the steps of the Lincoln
Memorial. When Martin Luther King dreamed, he dreamed of a "beautiful symphony of
brotherhood" -- a community where, as he said, "black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles,
Protestants and Catholics" join hands to build a better future for us all.
Each one of us has something to offer to the great, unending purpose of building a better
future -- and each one of us deserves a place in the community in return. If a member of the
community is denied the opportunity to make his or her contribution, not only does that person
suffer, but the community suffers as well. We may be in different boats, but we are all afloat on
the same lake. Nothing could be more American than the ideal that the community holds a
place for everyone.
To paraphrase an old saying -- ideals have consequences. Certainly our ideal of community has
had great consequences. Over the years, millions have come to America to find their places -- to
build a life of promise and accomplishment -- and people moved to California for the same
reason. People still come, attracted by the opportunity to build promising lives. As long as we
hold out hope, people will grasp it.
Another consequence of our ideal of community is that we -- who already fully enjoy its
benefits -- must affirm the ideal not only through words, but also through deeds. Our ideal calls
on us to remove the obstacles that prevent other members of the community from finding their
places and making their contributions and compels us to create affirmative opportunity for
everyone eager to contribute to our society. In that regard, for more than 30 years, we have
tried to come to grips with the economic problems of our nation's inner cities and the other
areas that have not kept pace with the growth and prosperity of the rest of the nation. We have
tried government programs -- some have worked, others have not, and the problems remain.
The experience has taught us a number of lessons. We have learned -- through experience --
that there is no magic that will make problems go away -- effective solutions require hard work.
We have learned -- through experience -- that problems are linked, and that solutions must be
linked, too.
Investment, employment, and home ownership flow from economic stability and sustained
growth -- and flow to them as well. We have learned -- through experience -- that if the
problems are to be resolved, we must turn to the marketplace to have sustained development
and economic opportunity.
We have -- more recently -- learned through experience that this investment is a source of
profit for the private sector. No one has shown us that way more than one of the men being
honored at this dinner tonight -- Dick Rosenberg.
Under his leadership, Bank of America came to view lending to develop the community --
lending for homes, lending to small businesses -- as a business opportunity. After pursuing that
opportunity, Bank of America discovered that the delinquency and foreclosure rates on its
portfolio of mortgages made in lower income neighborhoods were no higher than the rates on
home loans for middle and upper income individuals, and were sometimes better. That opened
a lot of eyes at Bank of America -- and it opened a lot of eyes elsewhere, too. A mortgage
enables people to have a stake in where they live that goes beyond the value of property. For
that reason, a mortgage makes a house into a home -- it creates a feeling of stability and
place for everyone.
To paraphrase an old saying -- ideals have consequences. Certainly our ideal of community has
had great consequences. Over the years, millions have come to America to find their places -- to
build a life of promise and accomplishment -- and people moved to California for the same
reason. People still come, attracted by the opportunity to build promising lives. As long as we
hold out hope, people will grasp it.
Another consequence of our ideal of community is that we -- who already fully enjoy its
benefits -- must affirm the ideal not only through words, but also through deeds. Our ideal calls
on us to remove the obstacles that prevent other members of the community from finding their
places and making their contributions and compels us to create affirmative opportunity for
everyone eager to contribute to our society. In that regard, for more than 30 years, we have
tried to come to grips with the economic problems of our nation's inner cities and the other
areas that have not kept pace with the growth and prosperity of the rest of the nation. We have
tried government programs -- some have worked, others have not, and the problems remain.
The experience has taught us a number of lessons. We have learned -- through experience --
that there is no magic that will make problems go away -- effective solutions require hard work.
We have learned -- through experience -- that problems are linked, and that solutions must be
linked, too.
Investment, employment, and home ownership flow from economic stability and sustained
growth -- and flow to them as well. We have learned -- through experience -- that if the
problems are to be resolved, we must turn to the marketplace to have sustained development
and economic opportunity.
We have -- more recently -- learned through experience that this investment is a source of
profit for the private sector. No one has shown us that way more than one of the men being
honored at this dinner tonight -- Dick Rosenberg.
Under his leadership, Bank of America came to view lending to develop the community --
lending for homes, lending to small businesses -- as a business opportunity. After pursuing that
opportunity, Bank of America discovered that the delinquency and foreclosure rates on its
portfolio of mortgages made in lower income neighborhoods were no higher than the rates on
home loans for middle and upper income individuals, and were sometimes better. That opened
a lot of eyes at Bank of America -- and it opened a lot of eyes elsewhere, too. A mortgage
enables people to have a stake in where they live that goes beyond the value of property. For
that reason, a mortgage makes a house into a home -- it creates a feeling of stability and