Issue Position: The American Dream

Issue Position

The American Dream is based on a set of ideals. These ideals include Democracy, Rights, Liberty, Opportunity, and Equality.
American writer and historian, James Truslow Addams, defined the American Dream as

life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement" regardless of social class or circumstances of birth
None of these ideals are meant to exclude any sector of American people, not by race, gender, sexuality or nationality. Of course, there are many who would disagree. They would like to see our nations' laws rolled back to a time when we did not protect the rights of everyone.

Today there is a war being waged against the poor in America and. ultimately, against the very ideals our nation was founded on. As Congress continues to push for cuts to much needed social programs and refuses to address the hunger and homelessness of millions of Americans, in any meaningful way, we are neglecting our fellow Americans. We have reached a dangerous point in the distribution of wealth in our nation. When 1% of the population holds 99% of the wealth our nation is not operating in the way that our forefathers intended. We need to create an economic environment that allows for a more fair distribution of wealth. We need to increase wages, strengthen Social Security and Medicare, support unions and close tax loopholes for the rich.

And what about the people who come to the U.S. in hopes of living the American Dream?
America has a long history of welcoming immigrants. Our nation was built by immigrants from all over the world. While every nation should have a mechanism in place to deal with immigration, ours is broken.

Currently many politicians, elected and vying to be elected have made some vile and racist concerning desperate families that are seeking entry into the U.S.. They are tarnishing the very ideals that our country was founded on. Instead of addressing immigration reform in a reasonable manner and working through bipartisanship cooperation to find innovative solutions, they would rather talk of building giant walls and imprisonment.

We need to work together in government to find solutions to the problems that we face. We need to remember that the solutions we find and implement affect people, people with families and dreams. We need to look at how we can rebuild the immigration system to ensure that the people that attain citizenship add to our society. It is our moral responsibility to help others in need, those that wish to escape oppressive and dangerous lives. We can do so sensibly and responsibly, IF we come together to design policy that will protect those that need protecting and follows the ideals of the American Dream.

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