(Newscko) ─ The American dream is in crisis and continues to worsen. American Dream is generally accepted to be about freedom, economic prosperity, and a fresh start. Therefore, the term American Dream motivates people in the US and outside the US. Thus, for example, Chinese leader Xi Jinping started promoting “The Chinese Dream.”

However, in the last few decades, the US has changed significantly; the economy stagnated, growth slowed down, and social disparities increased. Some even feel the country is overwhelmed by the immigrants taking their jobs. Thus, many believe that American Dream is dead. This feeling is one of the reasons why slogans like “Make America Great Again” resonates well with certain people in the nation.

Why is the American Dream in Crisis?

There are many reasons why American Dream is in crisis. But, unfortunately, slogans like “Make America Great Again” have opposite effects, as many people fear it isn’t a great place to make a fresh start.

Most issues related to the American Dream crises have little to do with economic problems. After all, the US remains the largest economy in the world. Yet, when the understanding of the American Dream was popularized, the US was not the largest economy in the world. Thus, what is the reason for the crisis? There are many reasons, and here we look at only a few.

Though America is the largest economy, it is also showing signs of stagnation, which is natural for such a massive economy. Generally, large economies have slower growth rates than developing nations.

US society is also changing in many ways. There are massive social disparities, with 10% of the population having more resources than the rest of the 90% of the population. Thus, many in the US feel as if only the dreams of a few are getting fulfilled while the rest are struggling to meet their needs.

Inherited wealth

In the US, many are rich because they inherited that position from their father. Almost 50% of all wealthy people have inherited wealth, much higher than in countries like Canada, where only 20% have inherited, and 80% of wealthy people are self-made. It means that achieving the dreams may be easier in Canada or some parts of Europe, like Nordic Europe.

American Dream is about rags to riches. Most billionaires in the US are from a modest background. However, things are changing fast. Now experts say that only about 8% of children raised in the bottom 20% of the income distribution can expect to climb to the top, much less than many other nations. For example, the chances of climbing up to the top are twice higher in Denmark or Norway.

Many other issues in the US keep getting worse. For example, the nation used to be more welcoming to immigrants. Similarly, the country still needs to curb healthcare costs. It means that despite spending a significant chunk of their incomes on healthcare, people in the US cannot get quality healthcare. In addition, there are shortages of healthcare professionals—specifically, a critical shortage of preventive medicine physician workforce.

Conclusion

The US is a robust economy though the American dream is in crisis and continues to worsen. And things are not as gloomy as they may sound. Thus, it is possible to correct these issues and ensure that America again becomes the land where individuals can fulfill their dream.

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