He American Dream. Martin Luther King

Cody Johnson

Engl. 1302

August 29, 2014

                                        The American Dream

        What is the American dream as of today, and what does that mean? Many people from around the country ask and wonder that very same question, and is that dream attainable for African Americans and other minority groups?  Not just for foreign immigrants, but to the citizens and minorities of our very own country. This topic can be interpreted in many different ways by a number of different people. I myself believe that this dream is readily available to almost anyone in the world. Do I think the dream is still the same as Dr. Martin Luther King delivered in his speech over fifty years ago? I’m not so sure.

        There are so many definitions of the American dream today. Ultimately the dream was to have all the ideals of freedom to every American, which most countries do not have. People like the idea of having personal happiness and riches for themselves, as well as their families. The America dream is supposed to be the idea that people can be in a land that’s rich and full of opportunity for everyone that comes here to succeed and live a great life.  People love the idea of owning their own home or property; that has pretty much become a status symbol for many Americans. The idea of education in our country is probably first and foremost. I think I see more minorities in my school now that I am in college, than any school I have been to previously in my life. This just goes to show that the education in this country is highly sought after. I believe another part of the dream is to have access to all goods you can afford regardless of race, gender, or ethnicity. These points were deeply rooted in the famous speech that Dr. King delivered that day on August 16th 1963.

        Dr. King delivered a speech for which he was calling and end to all racism. I believe to some avail his speech still has a great deal of relevance for American’s today. Things In this country are very different than the way they were back then. Never the less America has come a long way. Today we have our first black president, Barack Obama, who speaks about the same racial injustice within our economy. President Obama speaks about racism more on a political level, where as Dr. King spoke on it in a civil rights movement manner. President Obama has praised King numerous times on how he has inspired this nation “to begin to live up to its creed”, but has it?