3 Shocking Secrets About the American Dream You Never Thought You’d Know
Are some people born disadvantaged when it comes to achieving the American Dream? The American Dream is less accessible to low-income families and people of color. Additionally, a person’s geographical location affects their upward mobility. But just how disadvantaged are these groups? The degree to which people have access to the American Dream through higher education is dependent on their economic and ethnic backgrounds, as well as their geographic location.
Generally, the clearest path to achieving the American Dream is through a college education. However, a college degree isn’t always a surefire way of achieving the Dream. In The Atlantic (Source E), Matthew O’Brien
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claims “so many well-off kids who don’t get a college degree stay well off… It’s less clear why higher education isn’t more of a path to prosperity for low-income children.” Actually, higher education is a great way to prosperity, in fact, “86% of college graduates left the bottom quintile,” (Source K) and college graduates are 5.3 times more likely to move up on the income ladder than their counterparts without a college degree. Studies show that a college education is hugely influential in how successful and affluent a person can become. However, actually getting access to that education is what most low-income families struggle with. Location plays an enormous part in how low-income students can gain access to top colleges and higher education.
It’s no secret that “high priced real estate increases property taxes,” (Source G) and those taxes go on to fund public schools, bringing in more affluent families. Low-income students in these schools find themselves surrounded in an environment where “classmates expect them to go on to college,” (Source G) in turn making these students more academically engaged. In addition to the positive environment, low-income students who attend more affluent schools are given access to critical support when it comes to submitting applications to elite colleges. Unfortunately, the inverse of this is also true. Low-income students who attend poorly funded schools are not given the support they need to get themselves to a quality education. This is where the Dream fails, with “a whimper of elite school applications by poor kids.” (Source E) The reality of the situation is, Ivies and other top schools are the route to the top, and without proper support, low-income students have no chance getting there, all because of their zip code and the area in which they live not sufficiently funding public …show more content…
schools. Even if students can submit their applications to elite colleges of their choice, their fight to the top isn’t over yet.
Lee Siegel, in his article “Rise of the Tiger Nation” illustrates just how tough it can be for people of color, specifically Asian Americans, to be accepted into top schools. He states, “Ivy League schools… stand accused of the discrimination against Asian American students who… must score higher than whites” to be admitted. While Asian Americans are still a minority in America, they remain the fastest growing group of people of color in the United States. However, even after a person receives their college degree, race still plays a large factor in their upward mobility. For example, in 2013 The Pew Charitable Trusts (Source K) claimed that “whites were two times more likely to leave the bottom quintile than blacks.” That’s absurd. But why is there this enormous gap in income mobility? Why are people of color so disadvantaged when it comes to upward mobility as compared to their white counterparts? The answer lies in the institutionalized racism and systematic oppression that our country is built upon, and racial minorities will continue to have these struggles at the hands of those in power (whites) until major changes are
made. Ultimately, all three factors determine a person’s access to the American Dream through higher education. While some factors, like race, play a larger part than others in a person’s degree of access to the Dream, all three factors are extremely influential when it comes to how successful a person can be. The American Dream is achievable for all Americans, however, the availability of the Dream is dependent on 3 key factors; economic background, or one’s starting location on the income ladder, ethnicity, and one’s geographical location.
There's definitely ways to gain access to the American Dream even though it seems like a fantasy to others. Yet, it is only attainable to those who actually want it. For Oden, he can find ways to improve his personal business because he has the freedom and access to do it. He is already provided access to the American Dream because he was capable to own a business that he can live off of financially. Furthermore, "Michelle, 19, is a freshman at the University of California at Merced.
American dream and trying to receive a proper education takes a lot of determination and it is
The American Dream can be accomplished with the right tools. In “The American Dream” by Martin C. Jischke he states,“ I represent just one of many millions of Americans whose lives and futures have been changed by the power of education” (74). Jischke’s
We were raised considering the jobs we could do in the future and the universities we may attend; we heard that hard work and dedication was the only essential to fly in this world. Everyone was aware of the standard of living that was expected and few hesitated to buy into the legendary dream. The American Dream itself is what we all grew up desiring. Suburban homes, multiple cars, hefty paychecks and fantasy vacations are its elements. The American Dream is exclusive and unsatisfying at its core.
In the book “They Say I Say”, Brandon King writes an essay bringing multiple perspectives on what Americans golden way of living is. The “American dream” is what most American citizens all strive for. Early settlers came in to try to achieve “the dream”. Those who already lived in America choose to stay because of its grand possibilities. The United States of America is the only place in the world where you have the rights to freedom of speech. What is the American dream? It used to be said that you could come to America and go from rags to riches; you could come with nothing and achieve everything you ever wanted. Take a second and think. We all ponder upon, is the so called “American dream” dead or alive? This has been a steamy topic
For the purpose of this paper, the American Dream will be defined as the idea that you can achieve financial stability through hard work, which often means going to college. The term “college” refers to any undergraduate or graduate program at a secondary institution. This paper aims to examine the relationship between attending college and one’s ability to achieve the American Dream. Attending college is thought to be an important step in obtaining the American Dream, primarily because receiving a higher level of education tends to lead to a higher paying job and furthermore a financially stable future. However, this isn’t always the case due to an increase in the need for students to take out loans and increase their debt in order to afford college expenses.
First, what is the American dream? According to David Wallechinsky, “the traditional American Dream is based on the belief that hardworking citizens can improve their lives, pay their monthly bill without worry, give their children a start to an even better life, and still save enough to live comfortably after they retire” (1). “The American Dream” states, “It has always represented the possibility for individuals to succeed and live a life of wealth and comfort, made possible by both the political and economic attitudes in the USA and the individual’s own hard work” (1). Daniella Nicole adds that “in years past, chasing the American Dream meant the sky was the limit. . .” (1). “At the core of the concept is the individual’s responsibility to aim for and achieve the American dream by working hard and taking advantage of the freedom offered to them by the country” (“The American Dream” 1). “A recent nationwide survey from LearnVest found that 43 percent of Americans today feel the dream is attainable for everyone - and about the same percentage feels that it’s within their grasp, personally,” notes Camille Noe Pagan. “For American Dreamers today,” states Nicole, ...
in education, work and resources. This guaranteed that success was earned in an upward mobile fashion and that equality was maintained. Education is one of the main focuses of this dream but the equality that use to be associated with this area has shifted its importance. Income inequality has swallowed up the importance of equality in education due to the lack of opportunities given to those who are in the lower and middle classes. Education as part of the American Dream is no longer an equal opportunity because it is overrun by income inequality.
The American Dream is known to be a hope for a better, richer, happier life for all citizens of every class. For almost all Americans, this entails earning a college degree, gaining a good job, buying a house, and starting a family. Although this seems wonderful, a large amount of the American population believes that the Dream has changed immensely because of increased prices in today’s society, the price of tuition being highly unaffordable, as well as the unemployment rate skyrocketing and weaker job growth. While some American citizens believe it has changed, others believe that the American Dream has not changed, but point out it is harder to obtain.
The American dream, essentially the constantly reiterated and embellished idea of someone who possessed nothing and ended up with everything, tends to bring misconceptions among citizens today about the nature of success itself. What this idea promotes is essentially that anyone can climb the social ladder regardless of the circumstances surrounding him or her. However, it must be noted that even though many have the potential to be...
... The more research that took place during this research paper made it more evident that the realisticity of people with color being able to achieve the American Dream is very scarce. With the numbers and data that certain researchers have collected, it proved that the achievement of the American Dream among people of color was indeed less due to certain obstacles and complications that others do not overcome. From jobs to home locations, the people of African American descendants always got the “left-overs” of the Americans and statistics support this claim. Although education could be an escape from poverty, the people of color rarely have access to good schools or education systems. All of these factors are evidently confirmations that the realisticity of a colored person to achieve the American Dream in today’s society is not impossible, however very difficult.
One of the reasons that the American Dream is still alive is that there are so many opportunities everyday. Most public schools provide students the necessities they need to succeed, so it is up to them whether or not one decides to use those necessities to achieve a goal. Most students in high school have an idea or dream of what they want their future to be like after high school. College is an example of an American Dream, where as student loans, scholarships, graduation coaches, and the ability to re-take the ACT are many opportunities to help one reach that goal. Some may choose to study abroad, which can be obtained affordably with getting a job or one c...
“America is the land of opportunity. If I work hard enough, I can be whatever I want to be. If I truly want something, I can get it. I will work hard and grow up to be whatever it is that makes me happy. The sky is the limit. These statements portray the American dream. Though the American dream seems a little more difficult to attain when the American dreaming is a member of a minority group living in poverty”. This quotation by author, Philip M. Deutsch thoroughly sums up the entirety of my paper. Deutsch starts out by listing several somewhat cliché statements summarizing the classic American’s view of the American dream; the hope of starting with nothing and ending up on top. However, he continues by revealing that the American dream is not as easily made a reality for those from other countries. This paper explores why it is easier for those born in America to attain prosperity in the United States. This paper will discuss the reasons immigrants have a harder time achieving the
Until recently the possibility of achieving the dream had been within reach. However, recently the youngest generations of Americans did not and are not growing up with this idea. America’s youth, made up of teenagers and young adults, especially those of color, are not able to reach their American Dream with the same relative ease that past generations were able to do so.
In modern society, the American Dream has become all about making money and less about doing what makes you happy (Gathright). Although the American Dream was built on the foundations that anyone, no matter who they are or where they came from, could achieve it, the truth is that there are several factors that determine someone 's chances of obtaining the dream, including race, gender, and social status. Your backgrounds play a big role in determining whether you will be able to achieve the "American Dream".