1/23/18TTT American Dream
Thousands of immigrants came to America to experience the American Dream. The American Dream was the idea that in America there was everything that they needed. Food, money, peace and jobs are all things that the immigrants came to get. About 2.5 million people came to the United States to escape the devastation in their countries. They left their countries to flee war, escape from poverty, famines, discrimination, and persecution. Immigrants came from all over the world such as China, Poland, Columbia and Ireland. People came here from the time of the 1800s to the 1900s. For most immigrants the American Dream was a myth because of, poor working conditions, discrimination, and poor living conditions.
The first reason the American Dream was a myth is because of poor working conditions. As referred to in Rose Cohen: First Day in a Sweatshop, “I understood that he was taking advantage of me because I was a child. And now that it was dark in the shop except for the low single gas jet over my table and the one over his at the other end of the room, and there was no one to see, more tears fell on the sleeve lining then there were stitches in it” (pg. 2). This text illustrates a young, Russian immigrant named Rose was being worked very hard, and how she was treated unfairly because of her age. In the source Shutting out the Sky the author wrote, “A policeman chased him to another corner, where a boy ran by and tried to spill all his chocolates a a joke. And still, every person brushed by him without buying anything” (pg. 6). This Romanian immigrant named Marcus was trying to make a living as a peddler, and had a difficult time doing so because of people that did not respect what he was trying to do. Lastly, the article Chinese Immigrants states, “We were three years with the railroad, and then went to the mines, where we made plenty of money in gold dust, but we had a hard time, for many of the miners were wild men who carried revolvers and after drinking would come into our place to shoot and steal shirts for which we had to pay” (pg. 5). This text shows customers that would terrorize these peoples shops which cost them money, and was quite scary. Bad working conditions was one thing that made the American Dream a myth.
Another reason that the American dream wasn’t a reality was because of the discrimination they faced. As written in Italian Immigrants, “Other Americans often mistakenly looked on Italians as gangsters or as people who would always remain poor and illiterate” (pg. 4). This is an example of the terrible things that the Americans thought of the Italians as just because of their ethnicity. The source Chinese Immigrants reads, “White Americans often discriminated against the Chinese, and tended to regard Chinatowns as mysterious, foreign places to visit” (pg. 5). This text shows that the Chinese were imagined as strange people because of their appearances and their lifestyle. The article Jewish Immigrants states in the text, “Other Americans resented the success of the Jews, and began excluding them from private clubs and schools. Some hospitals would not hire Jewish doctors, and the New York Bar Association would not admit Jews” (pg. 3). This displays the acts of discrimination towards the Jewish because of the jealousy others had of the Jews success. This is another way that the American Dream was a myth.
People experienced poor living conditions proving the American Dream was a myth. The source Shutting Out the Sky it states, “Marcus and and three other young men shared the sofa, sleeping with their heads on the cushions and feet propped awkwardly on chairs. Nine bodies pressed together on the floor, huddling like seals on a rock. In the kitchen, Mrs. Segal and one child cuddled on top of the wash tubs while the rest of the children slept on the floor” (page 4). Marcus, an immigrant from Romania immigrated to America thinking of only the riches and the great wonders, came to find the poverty and poor housing conditions there. In Mexican Immigrants it says, “Housing for the immigrants was usually poor. Farm workers often lived in temporary shelters that had no running water” (paragraph 2). The Mexican immigrants experienced poor living conditions that had to do with their jobs, and were very harsh to live everyday with. In the last source Jewish Immigrants the author writes, “One steaming hot night I couldn’t sleep for the bedbugs. They crawl slowly, bloated with blood, and the touch and smell of these parasites wakens every nerve to disgust” (paragraph 3). This text shows the conditions of bugs and temperature which were both bad conditions to deal with. Poor housing is the last way that the American Dream was a myth.
In conclusion, the American Dream was a myth for many reasons. Poor working conditions was one reason that made this dream a myth, because of the backbreaking work and continuous labor. Another reason, was the discrimination immigrants faced coming to a new place were they didn’t look the same as others. Lastly, poor living conditions was a common thing for immigrants coming to America because of the little money they had. Immigrants today still experience these things that make the American Dream a myth.