Does the American Dream still exist today? Well even if it does the America of today and for the most part the America of always hasn’t been all sunshine and dreams, but instead hardship, tears and inequality. In our current time not much has really changed in great beneficial ways for everybody. There is still racism that runs around rampant and our country is greatly divided in topics of justice and incarceration. Many people are put in jail just for looking the part of what a criminal might be. These people might not even be guilty but are nonetheless are suspects. Minorities and in many recent events African Americans have been killed in this broken idea of justice. Yet where is the justice for them? Now events like this represent how our …show more content…
Yet this very ignorance is one of many issues that is wrong with society and proves how “America is false to the past, false to the present, and solemnly binds herself to be false to the future” Frederick Douglas may have written those words back in 1852 but they still stand true. Our justice system hasn’t greatly improved. Since its inception it has been broken. Not only all throughout the course of history have many been wrongly accused of crimes, but as some researchers have started finding out punishment does not always reduce criminal offending. In the article “The Criminal Justice System is a Massive Failure. Here’s a solution” a professor states, “But there is overwhelming evidence of just how big of a policy failure it actually is. We have the largest prison population in the world, and the vast majority of criminal offenders, well north of 60 percent, reoffend within three years of being released from prison.” With the policy in question being punishment, the system punishes criminals which is the right and civil thing to do, do the crime, do the time, yet often it doesn't work. The criminals who often are put back in front of the American justice/incarceration system are those who lack opportunities or alternatives. Any alternative isn't worse than what the system would charge them with. So we continue to ignore the problem and hope it …show more content…
Some may believe the current justice and incarceration system in America is truly fine. They will say they aren't broken and don't cause any division between citizens, lead to injustices, or that racism is dead. On one hand everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but on the other hand you can disagree with that opinion and strive for changing a person's mind. One can agree that there have been changes and advancements in both systems for example justice has been served in a small part to African Americans with the abolishment of slavery, while woman also got the justice they deserved and gained rights, but overall they are still very much broken. The core foundation of each system is fractured as shown through the America we live in today, and the America from past times. Racism is a very clear dilemma in our world especially against minorities. People are killed. People are oppressed. People are discriminated against. This happens on a daily basis alongside countless of other injustices that the American system does not prevent. But what can we
In the article "Is The American Dream Still Possible?" By David Wallechinsky explains personal stories and statistics in regards if the American Dream is still possible to achieve. As for Oden from Georgia "has since started his own business, a 'leadership and personal development' consulting firm. His wife, Josett, works as a representative in the health-care field "I do believe I will recover But the traditional American Dream? For most Americans, it is still a dream—a pipedream”(56). Principally, there's different interpretations of what the American Dream consists of.
If you look up the meaning of the American Dream, you will keep finding definitions similar to this one: “the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative.” The real meaning of the American Dream however, varies from whom you ask. Many people argue that the American Dream is alive and well, whereas others might argue that the dream is pretty much dead. If you ask me what I think, I personally believe that the American Dream was once a farfetched goal of the people of America, where people dreamed of going from rags to riches. Though the dream might still be alive, it is no longer what is use to be. I believe that the American Dream nowadays, is just a short redefined version of living a middle class lifestyle. But, for others the dream might simply mean to escape poverty and give their children a better life. The American Dream however, is in my opinion not only applicable for natural born citizens but to legal and illegal immigrants as well.
In Brandon King’s 2011 book excerpt “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?”, he redefines the American Dream as “the potential to work for an honest, secure way of life and save for the future” (611). I would disagree with King’s beliefs, I think his definition is wrong as well as him saying that the dream is alive. When I hear the words ‘American Dream’ I think of the definition that dictionary.com gives stating, “the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative.” In this sense I think the American Dream is dead, predominantly because there is no equality when it comes to United States citizens. There is no equality when it comes to the
[enter hook here]. There are different interpretations of the American Dream. One can say that the American Dream is having an education, clothes, food, a house, and a job. Another can say that it’s an opportunity here and to do something great. Then there is just a simple dream, to be able to pay the monthly bills without any worries, or being able to give your children a better future by saving up. There is one question that is being asked now, Does America still provide access to the American Dream? In my opinion, i do not think America can still provide access to the American Dream.
With matted hair and a battered body, the creature looked at the heartless man outside the cage. Through the dark shadows you could only see a pair of eyes, but those eyes said it all. The stream of tears being fought off, the glazed look of sheer suffering and despair screamed from the center of her soul, but no one cared. In this day in age I am ashamed to think that this is someone's reality, that this is an accurate description of a human being inside a Canadian women's prison . Exposing the truth behind these walls reveals a chauvinistic, corrupt process that serves no greater purpose. The most detrimental aspect of all is society's refusal to admit the seriousness of the situation and take responsibility for what has happened.
we could stand to become a little more mindful of the situation and how our
Saint Augustine once said, “In the absence of justice, what is sovereignty but organized robbery?” The criminal justice system in America has been documented time and time again as being a legal system that borders on the surreal. We as Americans live in a country where the Justice Department has failed to collect on $7 billion in fines and restitutions from thirty-seven thousand corporations and individuals convicted of white collar crime. That same Justice Department while instead spending more than 350% since 1980 on total incarceration expenditures totaling $80 billion dollars. America has become a place where a 71-year-old man will get 150 years in prison for stealing $68 billion dollars from nearly everyone in the country and a five-time petty offender in Dallas was sentenced to one thousand years in prison for stealing $73.
The American dream is something very tricky, but when you become truly happy, that is when you know you have achieved your American Dream. All of these examples listed above provide a reason to believe that the American Dream is still going strong today. Every person has a dream or goal they want to achieve and I believe that is what keeps America strong and going. The dreamers keep us alive because they keep new ideas and concepts flowing throughout the country. The dreamers spark new dreams and it is never ending, which keeps the American Dream and the concept of having a dream or end goal alive. “Dreams don’t always have to exist while the sun is down and your eyes are shut” (Alex Gaskarth).
In America the function of the justice system is to protect citizens from harm and to punish offenders for the crimes they’ve committed. At the same time, the Justice System is supposed
Living in the twenty first century Americans would like to believe that they are living in the land of the free, where anyone and everyone can live an ordinary life without worrying that they will be arrested on the spot for doing absolutely nothing. The sad truth, with the evidence to prove it, is that this American Dream is not all that it appears to be. It has been corrupted and continues to be everyday by the racism that is in the criminal justice system of America. Racism has perpetuated the corruption of the criminal justice system from aspect of the initial stop, the sentencing in court, all the way to the life of an inmate in the prison. There seems to be nothing stopping it as it continues to grow
The idea of the American Dream still has truth in today's time, even if it is wealth, love, or
"I think the American Dream says that anything can happen if you work hard enough at it and are persistent, and have some ability. The sky is the limit to what you can build, and what can happen to you and your family" expressed Sanford I. Weill. The American Dream is still alive and obtainable. Many people have a definition of what the American Dream that is obtainable in their minds. People all have unique individual lives.
It’s clear – as we come together today – that too many Americans go to too many prisons for far too long, and for no truly good law enforcement reason. It’s clear, at a basic level, that 20th-century criminal justice solutions are not adequate to overcome our 21st-century challenges. And it is well past time to implement common sense changes that will foster safer communities from coast to coast (The US Department of Justice, para. 8-9, 2013).
The American Dream according to the collaborative efforts of the Oxford Dictionary and Bing Translator is "the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative". The American Dream was originally made as the idea that anyone can be successful in America, that regardless of your background you can go from rags to riches almost overnight with the proper effort. It seems to me however, that the modern idea of the American Dream is different. To me, the American Dream is the idea that one can live life as they choose without any individual having the right to belittle their ideal life. That is not to say you can live the life of a criminal and no one would care, but you can choose what and who you want in your life without being supressed. In America today, you can be almost any religion you desire, love someone of any gender, and choose a career path for yourself that you want without others forcing religion, opinions, or ideas upon you. This idea to me is the modern ideal of the American Dream, but regardless of which view of the dream you believe in it thrives within America, and both ideas of the dream still pertain
Unfortunately, none of which can be the definitive answer, but paint a good picture as to what we can do. Good or bad man have always strived to new endeavors, and when a situation arises, we face them head on. Right now we are faced with another. There is always a solution to a problem, and it is for us to find that solution.