America "Dreams" in the Presidential Election

In the eyes of many Americans, this year’s U.S. presidential election is an event that is extraordinary and sure to make history — either Obama becomes the first Black president or Sarah Palin the first female vice-president. They both come from ordinary families and were respectively nominated as the Democratic presidential candidate and the Republican vice-presidential candidate. Irrespective of which party wins, a new page will be added into the nation’s political history books, injecting something new and fresh into long-cherished “American dream.”

“American dream” has always been the key words Obama uses to represent his political stand. His association with the “American dream” also lies in the fact that he, as a Black American, breaks with tradition and stands out on the White-dominated political stage. In a certain sense, his nomination is the realization of the broad masses of Black American’s hopes and dreams.

Forty-five years ago, African-American civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. made the famous speech, “I have a dream,” encouraging Americans to fight for racial equality. The incumbent Democratic Congressman Lewis, King’s “comrade-in-arms,” believes that Obama’s nomination has been a crucial step towards realizing the ideal of Martin Luther King, Jr. On the other hand, Palin’s nomination as the vice-presidential candidate on the evening of September 3rd has been considered by some Americans as a major step forward towards gender equality.

Palin was born into an average White family. She worked her way up from city mayor to governor before being nominated as the vice-presidential candidate; she is no doubt the “girl next door as a Very Important Person,” which is another interpretation of the “American dream.”

Even prior to the founding of America, the seeds of the “American dream” had germinated. At that time, English immigrants sailed across the Atlantic to North America in order to establish their new homes. They all came with a strong conviction: here in America, every person, regardless of origin, can realize his dream as long as he works hard.

During the past several hundred years, the connotation of the “American dream” has continuously been enriched and expanded. The dream of Black America is racial equality, while women’s dreams are gender equality. But what remains unchanged is the core meaning of American dream: “as long as you work hard, you can succeed.”

But in actuality, for most Americans, the “American dream” has been very distant. A Pew Center study showed that in America only 6 percent of children living at the bottom of society ultimately changed their economic and social status.

In fact, in consideration of the dream of eliminating racial and gender inequality (somewhat associated with Obama and Palin’s nomination), the situation is far from being optimistic. Research shows that in the past 30 years, the income gap has been widening between African-American and White families; it also shows that the proportion of women in the American Congress is not only lower than that of most developed countries, but also behind that of many developing countries .

Why is the “American dream” one that only a small number of people can realize? Some scholars believe that “American dream” itself has its own undesirable factors, one of which is its unconditional stress on individual freedom and personal success.

This “dream,” however, when extended into international affairs, easily evolves into selfish profit-seeking. A simple example is that Americans, as 5% of the world’s population, consume one third of the world’s energy. So, if this kind of “American dream” is always stressed, I am afraid that to others it can only be a nightmare.