October 1972 - October 17, 1972 (Tuesday)

October 17, 1972 (Tuesday)

• The American Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program was approved by Congress, providing monthly social security benefits for disabled and aged persons who had not worked long enough to receive standard benefits from the Social Security Administration. The measure was a compromise, rejecting a proposal by President Nixon for a federal "Family Assistance Program" (FAP) that would have paid a minimum monthly amount to all households.
• Park Chung-hee, the President of South Korea, declared martial law nationwide, dissolved the National Assembly, and suspended the Constitution. Emergency rule was ended on December 13, but martial law continued in effect for more than ten years.
• Born: Eminem, American rapper, as Marshall Bruce Mathers III, in Saint Joseph, Missouri; Tarkan, Turkish pop singer, as Tarkan Tevetoğlu in Alzey, West Germany; and Wyclef Jean, Haitian-born singer, in Croix-des-Bouquets
• Died: George, Crown Prince of Serbia, 85