Analysis Of Anthony Depalma's Article 15 Years On The Bottom Rung

Many have come to the United States with the hopes of achieving the American Dream. America has been viewed as the land of opportunity, and a chance for a fresh start. But with opportunity also comes inequality and the chance of a powerful few taking control. Many inequalities are present within the article 15 Years on the Bottom Rung by Anthony Depalma. This articles chronicles disparities of the stories two immigrants who came to New York seeking the American Dream. Mr. Zannikos was very successful in achieving this goal. Through hard work and dedication, he came to own a chain of high-end successful diners in New York City. The other, Mr. Peralta, was just as hardworking, but was not nearly as successful. He was unable to achieve the American Dream despite all his efforts. Even with his hard work he found himself struggling to survive. He was quoted in the article saying “if I die tomorrow, there wouldn’t even be enough money to bury me.” The two men’s arrivals in New York are almost

Peralta provide an opportunity for these establishments to cut costs and obtain cheap labor. When Mr. Zannikos arrived and the periphery industry was smaller, there was less competition and therefore less need to exploit workers. By the time Mr. Peralta arrived it was very competitive and working hard was necessary in order to survive financially and maintain a somewhat good job. This competiveness makes good paying jobs with benefits harder to for Mr. Peralta to obtain and even harder for him to keep. Mr. Zannikos on the other hand came during a time where the periphery industry was not as competitive and was afforded the luxury of staying at one job. This allowed him to establish himself and gain more skills. This is a luxury that rarely existed by the time Mr. Peralta arrived. If Mr. Peralta displeased the managers or made one wrong move there were endless immigrants willing to take his job and for less pay (Depalma, 2005; Kerbo,