Analysis Of A Fundamental Threat To The American Dream

Many years ago, my step-father left the Dominican Republic for a voyage to America. He risked his life for the freedom and promise of opportunity, that we Americans have.The American dream is the principal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success. In order to prosper, a person must work hard, be determined, and have creativity; with these key components, my step-father rose from working as a cashier for his family to owning two booming convenience stores. Many would agree that upward mobility in America is decreasing; on the other hand, others would disagree with that claim. Barack Obama would agree with the statement and support it with his writing, "A Fundamental Threat to the American Dream"; while James

Both Barack Obama and James Surowiecki would both disagree with each other on the topic of social and economical mobility. Barack Obama explains in his piece how there is a decrease in upward mobility and growing inequality in economics and society. Obama states how the American dream promises equal opportunity to succeed, but it depends on effort and determination. Although this was the dream, in reality, African Americans and other minorities didn’t have access to it, they were out of opportunity. For example, women were restricted to poorly paid occupations. The economy started to go downhill once companies were moving away, and technology made it easier for companies to do less, taking away many jobs. This caused for the values of community to break down, it changes how people trust one another, it also challenges every quality that a person has. Surowiecki would disagree with Obama when he says there is a decrease in mobility; Surowiecki proclaims that there wasn 't much mobility to begin with, and

According to Beato, "economic mobility is not the sole measure of national well-being or progress"(Beato 350), there are other ways of advancing. Physical mobility has defiantly expanded, man kind went from walking, on hooves, using boats, to then horse and carriage, cars, and now flying. Technology has changed the way we live; performing task in less time, making consumer prices lower, making it possible to communicate with people miles away within seconds, you could even order your groceries online and have them delivered in minutes to you! There has been improvements within healthcare; new skills, better techniques, and updated equipment that is has made practice even more safe, and time efficient. America has also moved socially forward; in 2015, it was made legal for same sex couples to get married, in 2008, Obama was elected the first African American president and served two terms. An example of advancement that shows how America has grown was the election of 2016, having a female democratic representative. Hilary Clinton symbolized all the work that feminist have put in to be looked as an equal and not a housewife, or just a senate. The race showed how gender roles are evolving; women are more involved and interested in fields that usually favor towards men, and it proves that women shouldn’t be underestimated because they are