The American Dream can still be achieved in today’s society, but not for immigrants who still face discrimination in their new home. Moving to a new place can be hard, especially if you don’t speak the same language and come from a different lifestyle. Immigrants face that problem every day in America. Many immigrants come looking for a new lifestyle, the American Dream lifestyle, yet only a few can obtain that special dream. That leaves the question: Is the American Dream still possible if you’re an immigrant?
Most immigrants looking for the American Dream often face the choices of push and pull factors that cause them to immigrate to the U.S. Most of the push factors include violence in the immigrants’ home countries. “A study concluded by Doctors Without Borders revealed that among 500 Northern Triangle migrants surveyed, almost 40 percent mentioned direct attacks or threats to themselves or their families…” (National Immigration Forum). Violence can be hard to deal with, and it certainly plays a role in immigrants coming to the U.S. “Moreover, large numbers of people in the Northern Triangle countries live in poverty (defined by the World Bank as living at $1.90 or less per person per day[24]), which makes them more likely to be victimized by gangs that use their socioeconomic vulnerability to manipulate them and target them for membership recruitment and extortion,” (National Immigration Forum). Another push factor is poverty. Many third-world countries are impoverished, and that can cause their people to immigrate to new places, especially places like the U.S., which have many dreams going for them. Altogether, push and pull factors that bring immigrants to the U.S. include poverty and violence. These people want the American Dream; can they still accomplish it?
Discrimination in the workplace plays a key factor in immigrants trying to achieve their dreams. “Of the working immigrants surveyed, nearly half — 47% — reported being paid less than U.S.-born workers to do the same job, not being paid for all their hours worked, being given fewer opportunities for promotions or raises, getting worse shifts or having less control over their hours, or being harassed or threatened in the workplace because they were immigrants,” (Gerber). Immigrants are being discriminated against more and more as they travel to the U.S. This can cause problems with making money, which you need to survive in America. While the workplace can have troubles with immigrants, some thrive. Some immigrants can build a new life and achieve their ideal American Dream, but only those who can speak English. “… so did 55% of those who said they didn’t speak English well, according to the poll, which surveyed immigrants with a wide range of careers and statuses under U.S. law,” (Gerber). Many immigrants face discrimination because there is a language barrier between us and them. This makes it hard for immigrants to communicate what they want and causes us to look at them differently. Immigrants are being hated because of factors they cannot control and that leads to making a new life difficult.
Immigrants who thrive in their respective fields still struggle as housing prices have gone up, and even they can’t afford to keep up. With the increase in housing prices, there has been a decrease in affordable small homes. Small homes used to dominate the market as being cheap and affordable; now they’re almost nonexistent. “And communities nationwide are far more prescriptive today than decades ago about what housing should look like and how big it must be. Some ban vinyl siding. Others require two-car garages. Nearly all make it difficult to build the kind of home that could sell for $200,000 today.” (Badger). This refers to the fact that nowadays, the average American thinks that an “affordable” house consists of 2-car garages. However, immigrants don’t need big fancy houses, even though 2-car garage houses have become “normal” for the average American. There aren’t enough small houses available on the market, but that all comes down to one factor, the cost to build. “In Portland, Ore., a lot may cost $100,000. Permits add $40,000-$50,000. Removing a fir tree 36 inches in diameter costs another $16,000 in fees.” (Badger). Many realtor companies are having trouble building affordable houses because everything is too expensive to produce. All the costs to build means that they have to have higher prices when listing their builds. It isn’t fair to the immigrants because they now have trouble affording the homes that they need. The economy is causing all houses to be too expensive and immigrants now can’t afford to live in their new home country.
The American Dream is still achievable, but not if you’re an immigrant who faces discrimination in your new home. Immigrants have a hard time getting started in America due to things like discrimination in the workplace and rising house prices. For everyone to achieve the American Dream, we need to embrace these newcomers and make them feel welcome. We need to fix the language barrier and be better communicators for immigrants to thrive. All of these changes can lead to a beautiful, diverse country and make the American Dream something that everyone can accomplish.
