The American Dream and the Contemporary Immigrant Experience in the United States
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Authors
Bard, Jessica L.
Issue Date
2008
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
Immigration has become an increasingly complicated issue in recent years, and it is
difficult to ignore the conflicting attitudes directed toward immigrants entering this
country. Because of such conflicting viewpoints of the current immigration situation, the
way in which the United States-itself a nation of immigrants-welcomes its newcomers
has changed immensely. A country that prides itself on the ideal of the "American
dream"-that anyone, regardless of class, family ties or national origin, can succeed
through hard work and frugality-is, as this project seeks to explain, promising more
than it cares to deliver. The following research analyzes the extent to which the
American dream is achievable for Hispanic immigrants residing in the U.S. today. From
a primarily economic standpoint, this Senior Individualized Project tells the story of the
modern immigrant experience in the U.S. through economic fact and from the points of
view of Hispanic immigrants residing in the greater Kalamazoo area. As the research
shows, the American dream is not a reality for Hispanic immigrants, and such barriers as
discrimination, certain government policies, and the macroeconomic conditions that exist
both here and abroad all interfere with the economic achievement of this group.
Description
70 p.
Citation
Publisher
License
U.S. copyright laws protect this material. Commercial use or distribution of this material is not permitted without prior written permission of the copyright holder.