America First?

The American Dream is dead! There, I said it, but it's true. That dream of pulling yourself up by the bootstraps and making yourself unbelievably rich can still happen, but the foundation of this nation, the way it was formed and made through immigrants fleeing their countries to find their freedom and safety, is dead. Immigrants take the brunt of the blame for so many problems facing the lower class of the nation.

"They took our jobs!!" By all means tell me the jobs they're stealing from you. Hard working immigrants were what founded this nation by bucking a governing body that never supported and actively oppressed them. Now, here we are with our own governing problem, and this one doesn't just apply to the immigrants being oppressed and targeted but to the lower and middle classes who are left without enough allies in governing bodies to get them the help they need. We have some, but they are seen as radical or living in a fantasyland.

That land is no fantasy; if it was, that fantasy would have been what the founding fathers viewed as America. Freedom. Freedom to all those who need it. Freedom to express religious beliefs. Freedom to pursue passions. Freedom to be oneself without fear of persecution. We and all those who wish it have the right to the pursuit of happiness. When did that become a controversial issue? Billy should suffer because I don't share his belief in what happiness is? That is not America. Jose should suffer because he wasn't born in the United States? That is not America. Black men should fear being shot jogging in public? THAT IS NOT AMERICA!

America is hope. Hope for a better life. Hope for the freedom it is supposed to personify. Not only hope to pursue dreams, but to make those dreams a reality. These dreams aren't of money or power. These American dreams are the dreams of children. The uncorrupted childlike dreams that excite the soul and cover you in a cloak of comfort. These are the dreams we all held close to our chest. Many of us have never dared to speak them out loud. Those are the American dreams. The funny part about those dreams is that they were never unique to American people.

The dreams are shared by every human being on Earth. Black, white, red, yellow, blue, green, purple it doesn't matter. Dreams are there. Everyone should have the right to pursue them and attempt to live the life they had their eyes on since childhood. Many would fail to achieve them, but at least they could stop asking what if. They could go to bed at night knowing that they gave it their all, and, on top of that, they can continue to dream big.

That's my vision of America. That's my dream. Is it achievable or is it just a dream?