Wade Michael Page was a white supremacist who believed there should only be one race, the white race. On August 5th, 2012 he opened fire on the Sikh Temple. He killed six people and terrorized countless more because they practice a different religion and had a different skin color. Attacks like these cause people isolate themselves from the world. They are afraid of what might happen to them if they embody their true selves. Over the course of US history, it has been proven time and time again diverse Americans are unequal. The American Dream is about equal opportunities and the opportunity to succeed. The American dream is unattainable for certain people due to poverty, race, and gender.
Poverty sets back Americans and doesn’t allow Americans
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Over the course of The United States’ history, America has always struggled with racism this is demonstrated, in the 1920s. In F.Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, Tom, a rich white man, discusses the white race and how it should be the only race. He explains, “It’s up to us, who are the dominant race, to watch out or these other races, will have control of things,” (19). The racist comment Tom stated is one of many racist and uncalled for comments made from other Americans that prevents diverse Americans to be able to achieve their American dream. Throughout The United States, racism has occurred all over in history. During the 1950’s segregation between white and black people was declared. The opportunities between the races were tremendously different. White people had a higher social status and many of them were prejudiced against black people. Kids had to attend different schools according to their color of their skin. Black Americans had to sit in the back of the bus whereas white people sat in the front. However, Martin Luther King Jr. did not think it was right to judge someone solely based on color. He fought for equal rights, in 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. marched for equality and delivered a speech that inspired many Americans across the states. In Martin Luther Kings Jr “I Have a Dream Speech” he states, “one day they will live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their …show more content…
Many people are discriminated by gender. In the past year, many women spoke out about being sexually harassed in their workplace, usually by a higher authority figure. Statistics show, “one in three women are sexually harassed in the workplace.” Multiple women who are apart of the statistics do not tell anyone they were assaulted due to being scared. Some victims of sexual harassment and gender discrimination live in fear which makes it hard for them to obtain their American Dream. Gender discrimination has been an issue that has plagued America throughout history. In America, gender harassment was a big problem in the 1922 many girls and woman were taken advantage of. In The Great Gatsby, Daisy explains what it is like to be a woman: “ That’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool” (Fitzgerald. 17). Daisy’s explains how women and girls do not have a good future based on their gender and how society sees women and girls. Over the course of this past year inequality of pay has become more and more of an issue especially for a woman of color. The “American Association of University Women” states “The gap was largest for Hispanic women, who were paid only 54 percent of what white men were paid in 2016.” Hispanic woman along with other women are getting paid way less than men which is unfair and not equal. To sum it up, woman have fewer opportunities to succeed solely
Racism was common all throughout the early twentieth century. For instance, according to bbc.co.uk, “In 1921 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a serious race riot took place and 25 blacks and 9 whites were killed” and, “By the mid-1920s, the Klan had over 100,000 members”. In addition, according to www1.assumption.edu, “Ford became a virulent anti-Semite”, showing that the 1920s were filled with racism against multiple races. Likewise, racism is not absent from The Great Gatsby and is often overlooked in its significance throughout the novel. It is largely portrayed through Tom Buchanan, a rich, caucasian-nordic male.
The American Dream exists in the hearts of all Americans and is a concept that drives many people from all over the world to the borders of a welcoming America. It holds the promises of infinite possibilities in a limited world. Escaping from societies where societies where racism and poverty are often prevalent, immigrants come to America to grasp a part of the infamous American Dream. Nonetheless this dream also exists in the hearts of many Americans already present in America. Perhaps it burns the brightest in the hearts of African Americans, whose past is tainted with execution based on their race. Yet, the American Dream is not applied or only conditionally available for those that seek it the most- minority or immigrant populations. The
Sex Discrimination in the American Workplace: Still a Fact of Life. (2000, July 01). Retrieved from National Women's Law Center : www.nwlc.org
The phrase “The American Dream” is an incredible thing. The promise of that dream has convinced hundreds of millions of people that, as a citizen of this country, you can accomplish anything if you work hard enough. Whether you want to be a doctor, athlete, or even a president, those things should all be within your reach, regardless of your class or race! America is the nation where dreams can come true. Unfortunately, for a large number of people that believe this, this is a concept that does not apply to them. Many Americans find opportunities are denied to them because of their race. Others can be found living in poverty and far from anything that would be considered desirable. Statistics show that the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans earned 9 percent of all U.S. income in 1979. Did you know that the same 1 percent earns 24 percent of all U.S. income today? That is a staggering example of the income inequality in America. The American Dream is that if you work hard and have the ability you will succeed, but that has become an impossibility for millions of disadvantaged Americans because the income inequality has been steadily increasing since the 1970s and racism and poverty are constant barriers to their success and financial security.
Racism is very prominent in the late 1920’s. White people establish segregated institutions and they feel as though, because they are white, they are inherently superior to all other races. In The Great Gatsby, set in the 1920’s, F. Scott Fitzgerald subtly shows this racism. Three main characters show the racism: Nick, an unsuccessful businessman; Tom, a wealthy polo player; and Daisy, Tom’s wealthy wife. Nick narrates the story so the racism he exhibits is shown in his descriptions and perceptions of others around him. Racism towards African- Americans and Jews also comes up frequently in normal conversation between the Buchanans and Nick. The white society, represented by Nick and the Buchanans, feel like they are superior to other races and they are entitled to subjugate them.
Another disadvantage black Americans faced in the 1950’s was not being allowed to vote, white Americans intimidated then into not voting and even if they still weren’t intimidated blacks would have to pass a test to be able to vote and the majority of black Americans couldn’t write or read because they were uneducated this was because there were very few only ‘coloured’ schools and more no ‘coloured’ schools so their were very few educated non-white Americans. In the only black schools they had bad equipment and lowly qualified teachers so the education standard for black students was bad. Jobs were also segregated because white Americans were given high paying jobs that were usually easy and enjoyable whilst black Americans were given hard manual labour jobs with very low wages, this meant they lived in ghettos and slum neighbourhoods which had very high crime rates.
There are various individuals throughout the world who believe that the American Dream cannot be achieved by all people. Those who agree with this view believe that our culture contains too many roadblocks and obstacles. Some of these obstacles include prejudice, poverty, and social inequality. Another view on this matter is that others believe that America is the “Land of Opportunity”. They also believe that if you can believe it, you can achieve it. Back in the early 20th century, The American Dream meant something to people; nowadays it is a term that various people loosely throw around. The American Dream is not realistic because it is not attainable to everyone like Cal Thomas presumes and although education, budget cuts and lack of employment may seem of some concern to only a small group of people, it should in fact concern anyone who cares about the status of the economy.
Everyone grows up with the thought of an American dream in mind . Unfortunately that American dream is only limited to the people who are not of color. Sadly the people of color and the american dream don 't match up to well. I feel that this is because it can’t be easily obtained due to improper education and never being given the opportunity to show what they’re made of. Maybe if we weren 't categorized by our living arrangements, or the amount of our wealth, or better yet being presumed as these incompetent animals who aren’t good for nothing. Then we too would be able to achieve our own american dreams ,but as people of color the chances of that are not likely living in a world that feeds us with this improper mindset.
The American dream is the general belief that American Citizens all have an equal opportunity to succeed socially and economically, regardless of any predating circumstances. This idea has been accepted as possible by the majority of citizens in this country. This “dream” cannot be true, as there are multiple discriminations in this country, which make it impossible for everyone to have the same chance to succeed. Biases against racial minorities, women, and citizens from lower social classes are examples of just a few reasons that everyone does not have the same chance to succeed in our current economic and social system in America, resulting in unequal chances to achieve “the American Dream.”
This was true in the 1940’s, and it’s still a relevant issue today. Then, it was rare for women to earn even slightly more than fifty cents to every man’s dollar. Now, the average woman earns anywhere from sixty to eighty percent of a man’s salary for the exact same job. Ranges vary depending on the specific career field. However, women of minorities remain stuck in injustice, systematic trends.
For the first time ever in America, during the 1920s, a shift in the gender norms occurred. The ratification of the 19th Amendment, granting women’s suffrage, marked the decade with a breakdown of the traditions governing women. Meanwhile a profound novel, The Great Gatsby, recognized the rapidly changing social dynamic. A variety of taboo is exposed throughout the novel in order to accurately reflect the era, such as impractical parties, drinking, and the new woman ideology. F. Scott Fitzgerald criticizes the disturbance of gender roles in the 1920s, through the perspective of Nick Carraway, the flawed and interesting characters struggle between traditional expectations and the progressive movement, in order to express the negative feelings
First, racism still plays a big factor in today’s society as it did fifty years ago. Some might say that everyone has equal opportunity, but some people in America will never see that blacks and whites are equal. Humans have the tendency to judge what is on the outside before seeing who the person really is. The South is the main area where the darker colors mean there is less opportunity and lighter colors mean that there’s more. In today’s society the ability to attain the American Dream is heavily influenced by race. While it is still p...
For several decades, most American women occupied a supportive, home oriented role within society, outside of the workplace. However, as the mid-twentieth century approached a gender role paradigm occurred. The sequence of the departure of men for war, the need to fill employment for a growing economy, a handful of critical legal cases, the Black Civil Rights movement seen and heard around the nation, all greatly influenced and demanded social change for human and women’s rights. This momentous period began a social movement known as feminism and introduced a coin phrase known in and outside of the workplace as the “wage-gap.”
It is very important to be concerned about the issue because it is constantly increasing throughout the United States. It upsets me that women are paid less than men because women have the same ability and work ethic as men do, but they are looked at differently. According to AAUW, women make 77 percent of what men make. This rate hasn’t changed since 2002 (Hill, 2013). Statistics show that women will never make as much as men due to the thought of never being comparable to men (Williams, 2013).
Martin Luther King Jr. realized during his lifetime that his country, America, was not the land of the free. Dr. King knew that “colored” people, specifically black people, were not treated the same as white people. He understood that change needed to happen, and that he needed to take part in demanding that that change