I am currently gathering research for a longer article about suicide and student loan debt. Earlier this week, Matt Stannard from Shared Sacrifice interviewed me about the subject.
Since that interview, I've received a few posts from people who have informed me that they fully intend to off themselves (see the most recent comments here and here). As a result of these disturbing posts, I have asked many of you to come out in support of struggling individuals, and tell them that nothing -- not even Everest-sized mountains of student loan debt - ought to lead them to committing suicide. Thanks to all of you who have posted comments of support so far. Trust me, it helps. Several people have told me that if it weren't for me - and others who are raising holy hell about the student lending crisis - they would have killed themselves long ago. So please, if you haven't posted something supportive, think about doing it now. You never know, your own story about feeling similarly could safe a life.
So many people are hurting, and so many people are thinking about killing themselves. These people aren't crazy. Far from it. They are approaching their indebtedness from a rational perspective, and sadly suicide seems like a viable choice. That's not out of the norm. When there are severe economic downturns, people often turn to drastic measures to get out of a hopeless predicament. Financial ruin leads many healthy people to an early grave, and quite often it's from their own hand. As Barbara Ehrenreich stated quite frankly in an article from 2008 entitled, "Suicide Spreads as One Solution to the Debt Crisis," when people feel backed up against a wall, it's only natural for them to say, "Just shoot me!" At that time, many people who found their homes being repossessed chose to proclaim, "I'll just shoot myself!"
After listening to my interview, a reader let me know that they contemplate jumping from the 27th floor of their work every day.
Here's what they wrote:
Cryn, I listened to your interview and cried for hours. I graduated from law school with honors back in 2003 and never found a job as an attorney. I've worked a bunch of odd jobs the last 7 years just to survive. I've been a retail worker, a call center worker, a housekeeper, a dishwasher, and a temp - seriously, it seems like I've been everything except what I went to school for! I know my life is ruined and that I will never be a practicing attorney. I get it, really I do. After all, I'm around attorneys 24/7 in my current job and they look down their noses at me or else just ignore me. I am a loser and no one wants to be around a loser or else they might become one to. I try to remind myself that my life wasn't always like this - that people used to like me and that I had a lot going for me in college and even law school. However, after years of being snubbed and treated so terribly, I have learned to be as invisible as possible and to keep to myself. I'm sure that gives everyone at work a good laugh - then they can say I'm anti-social or not good with people and therefore not attorney material.I could live without being a practicing attorney but what I can't get over is the fact I ruined my life by borrowing $100,000 to go to law school. I thought I was making a really good investment in myself because I believed in myself back then. I knew I would do well in school, and I guess I thought I would get a job and be able to pay back my loans. How incredibly wrong I turned out to be. Even if I am able to get out of student loan debt, I will be starting over from scratch. Zero savings. Zero retirement. Zero career options.
Every day I think about jumping out the 27th floor window of the office building where I am currently working to escape the mess I have made of my life. I am in so deep now, there is no way out. I used to keep myself up at night thinking about how I would ever pay my student loans off, but now I keep myself up at night, wondering if this is really how the next 30 years of my life will be - always moving from one dead-end job to the next, always being looked down at by attorneys (and even non-attorneys when they find out I'm an attorney but not working as one), always feeling so sick to my stomach that I can't hardly even eat anymore. I used to worry about starving to death if I couldn't afford to buy food if I never found a job, but now I don't have to worry about that because I have no appetite! Maybe I will just wither away and finally be put out of my misery. I really don't think I can keep doing this for another 7 years, let alone the rest of my life. I don't know what to do. While I haven't completely given up, I don't think it's that far around the corner. . .
I'm sorry this is long and depressing, but it's nice to get this all out. I am not asking anyone to forgive my student loans; I fully intend to pay back every last cent I borrowed. I just want to feel like all of my hard work and sacrifice was worth it, instead of always feeling humiliated, embarrassed, ashamed, bitter and angry. I'm so tired of feeling this way - I just want the pain to go away. Thanks for listening.
As Matt Stannard asked, and I'll reiterate, how many people aren't reaching out to me? How many people will wither away, jump from buildings, or drink themselves to death because of their debt?
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My history is fuzzy. But, I believe one principle this nation was founded upon was the ability to escape indentured servitude. The concepts of bankruptcy and becoming a WHOLE person again was one tenet to this principle.
In no way can a rasonable person state that disaalowing student loans in bankrupotcy follows the principles that AMerica was founded upon. Teh bankruptcy laws should prtect the individual's needs, not corporate needs.
If the gentleman in a previous comment is correct that "then banks would not loan" then we need to figure out a different funding mechanism as a society. Keeping people in indentured servitude, coming up with repayment schemes like, "well, if you work as a a teacher in some inner city where you can be shot for 10 years then you only owe X amount" is NOT a solution.
1.The government provides a huge pool of federally backed loans;
2. Said loans trough has no underwiriting standards;
3. There is no discussion or concern from the government as to whether you will be able to pay the money back (and the colleges do not care);
4. Crucially, the government, deapite providing the vast majority of money for these colleges, does not regulate the tuition these colleges can charge; and
5. Strip away all bankruptcy protections for student loans (apart from the impossibly high undue hardship standard).
"Private colleges" are really private in name only. Sure, some of them have large endowments...however most of them rely on the federally backed loan system. In essense, both public and nominally private colleges are publicly funded. It makes no sense for the federal government to provide all this money and not regulate price.
The colleges are only acting rationally, (if not morally) in raising tuition 7/8% every year for the past 20/30 years. Talk to some of your elders....they used to be able to work a summer job and save enough money to go pay the tuition at college for the next year!! We need to scrap the government backed loan system...then you will see tuition come down to affordable levels....then have colleges provide scholarships to able students who still cannot afford to pay.
It's a wonderful system. The Mafia couldn't do any better...
That said, part of the problem lies in a couple areas. First, the insistance that everyone goes to college. Not everyone should go to college, there are many great and necessary jobs that don't require a college education. Not everyone is cut out for college, for various reasons. So many students go to college because it is expected.
Secdondly, many people, including those in the previous group major in less than ideal majors. Many of these majors like philosophy or communications don't have a lot of real world advantages. My wifes friend majored in English with a concentration in poetty, how is that going to help get a real job. So, many of these people will have a harder time than other graduates finding jobs or at least jobs that pay as well as other grads with more useful degrees.
Finally, there is also pressure to finish school in 4 years, so these students work part time mainly for spending money. I took 6 years (went in the summer as well) and worked full time. I made about $15-20k a year. I left school with under $10k in loans. Yes, I lost 2 years in the work force, but that savings on 10+ years of interest and loan payments of $100 a month more than makes up for it.
Smart planning beforehand can help future students.
2. They don't have dorms rooms and meal plans like all-inclusive vacation resorts - students must arrange and pay for their own living expenses
3. The universities are for academia ONLY. They do not have sports teams, stadiums, gyms, swimming pools, concerts and events, etc.
4. Not everybody can go to college in Europe, you must pass an entrance exam or portfolio review to be admitted. In the US, every citizen is a potential "customer" to higher education and can enroll. Not so in Europe, there is a far smaller pool of potential students.
5. And this is the most important reason of all - there are no student loans in continental Europe, so education must remain affordable to people. If every young European could suddenly borrow up to $80K from the EU to spend on higher education, the cost of that education would suddenly rise to $80K. We make this huge line of credit easily available to all citizens, Europe makes sure that the students who ARE college material don't need to go into debt to get the education.
The system is indeed broken -- it is usury to allow students to sign their names on loans this high. And it is appalling that higher education has gotten so expensive that students and their parents would even conceive of allowing them to put themselves in this situation.
BK protection must be restored to student loans. We risk creating a society where only a rare few will be able to go to college, as grants continue to dry up in this age of austerity, tuition spirals upward, and the word about this devilish debt continues to spread.There are also many stuck in default, being tortured with the hopes that they will one day be allowed to be a productive part of society and our economy, rather than a "risk and liability" from bad credit scores and wage garnishments. Why?
I know it's tough to not see a way out of this hole- and I cannot say my mind hasn't contemplated suicide from time to time from all the stress my debts cause- but please try to hang in there, try to stick by friends and family during these tough times. You are not alone! It is essential for this battle that as many of us are heard, seen, and are willing to fight until the end as possible, for change to happen!
unfortunately,for so many depts,it's a Ponzi scheme that benefits the tenured fculty, but not the kids.
I understand where this person is coming from. Unfortunately, people make up artificial rules. One artificial rule is that if you have not worked in your field for X amount of years, you become unemployable. The student loan people don't give a dam...and Obama doesn't either. If he did, he would have done something.
I filed chapter 7 bankruptcy and it was discharged in January 2009. By definition and common sense, that means I was (and still am) suffering financial hardship. SO TELL ME PLEASE, why am i unable to include my student loan debts? Bankruptcy is suppose to make a person WHOLE and give a fresh start.
THE SYSTEM IS BROKEN! WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO FILE BANKRUPTCY ON 100% OF THE LOAN. WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO GO BACK AND AMEND OUT BANKRUPTCY IF WE HAVE ALREADY FILED! OBAMA NEEDS TO LEAD!!!
No, I have not given serious consideration to suicide,..but I have given serious consideration to leaving the country, which I might still do.
I'd like to ask another question, why is so much free money in the form of grants and fellowships given to foreign students, but citizens get DEBT?
I promise you that at Texas A&M I personally witnessed people who are foreigners get free money, while I received debt. When I asked about it. I was told "...well, you see, they are not eligible for loans, so to keep them in the program we allocate the fellowships primarily to people who are not already at the university to entice them" That was actually a paraphrase, but that was the point. Foreigners are not eligible for loans, citizens are..there is only so much money available in the form of fellowships...so programs play games with the allocation of funds to keep "diversity"..diversity before treating your own citizens fairly...
The concept that NO ONE would get loans if loans were dischargable is asinine. Schools would be forced to cut costs and watch the bottom. The system would restructure, but just as before, people would still get loans. College might actually become affordable.
I also had a progressive outlook long before the word progressive was being used. I read Krugman and Dean Baker years before the recession, knew a mortgage related crisis was imminent, and was able to resist the persistent pressure from family and friends to buy a house. I was persistent, going without (often eating little more than pb and j for dinner, stopped going out to expensive social events), and work in temp attorney jobs.
In 6 of the longest years of my life I was able to pay off all of my student loan debt. Unfortunately, right after I did this, the Great Recession hit and my skills in frugality became necessary again due to inconsistent employment.
Freedom from debt is not impossible, it just takes persistence, determination, and willpower. I'm not going to lie... it's tough but doable.
I am 46. I went back to school at an older age because even after my bachelor degree I was never able to get a decent job. I thought going back to school to get an advance degree would help my prospects. At 46, I have no energy left to work long hours and I have grown tired of sacrifice. I have been sacrificing for far too long. It would be one thing to be 26 and sacrifice 6 years...but, when does it end? As I mention in my previous post. If a person is eligible for bankruptcy, as I was, then student loans should be included.
No one should have to live a worse life for going to school. A person who doesn't go to school might say..hey, I am eating P and J because I should have gone to school. A person who went to school, should not have to say, I am eating P and J because I did go to school. The system is broken.
ALLOW PEOPLE TO FILE BANKRUPTCY! ALLOW PREVIOUS BANKRUPTCIES TO BE AMENDED!
Student loan debt is the only real Debtors prison in existance in the USA. It may not have walls, nor bars on windows and doors, but a prison it is, as it never lets you otherwise succeed in life. And it haunts you every minute of every hour of every day. Combined with the draconian collections powers, it makes people give up even trying to deal with the ever growing debt.
Congress has known about this for over 30 years. Only now, with a ruined economy, are they finally seeing the results, - mainly because they can no longer hide it.
Please who ever reads this, do not choose suicide. Join the fight to get our consumer protections restored, and to get some real reform and relief made available for those of us in default. We need numbers, and you diminish them when you move on to the next reality via suicide.