It takes 100 years for a polaroid picture to fade. Their lifeline is decreased if they are stored under intense lighting. Since the US has been in the spotlight in the last 50 years for immigration, the American dream polaroid has been discolored. A once vibrant image in the eyes of the old generations has shifted and morphed into a demented figure that has completely changed the generation z’s view of the American dream. During the 1950s, it was looked upon to be about living a long, healthy life, along with a sustainable job and a loving partner. As part of the new generation, I believe that the American dream has shifted into something strikingly different than it was previously. During the 1780s the term “mixing pot” was composed to mirror the mass flow of immigrants migrating into the U.S.  Considering the legacy of America was built up by immigrants, it is surprising to see current events portray them as villains, rather than one of our own. I believe that the new American Dream must embrace these immigrants' cultures rather than disregarding it.  

Our Founding fathers set the base for what America was meant to be when they signed the constitution in 1787. The U.S.A’s history is rich in diversity, early in the 1600s Europeans were already making there way across the sea to come to the land of opportunities. Some of these minorities include Spanish in Florida, British in New England and along the east coast, Dutch in New York and the Swedes in Delaware (US immigration timeline). Many came for religious freedom such as the Pilgrims but most sought out economic success (US immigration timeline). In March of 1790, the first immigration law was passed by congress, The Naturalization act allows any white person that has been living in America for at least 2 years can become a citizen. Without citizenship, you were still allowed in the country, just denied the right to vote, appear in court or own land. This was the first time in the United States that people were not shown equal rights to one another. Later down the line in 1875 the first anti-immigrant party was created. As the number of Irish and German immigrants settling in the US went up, the Know-Nothing Party arose and began to create propaganda towards the European families. This anti-immigrant group's main goal was to discriminate against those that migrated to the US from Ireland. Throughout the years, people began to be more and more discriminatory towards these immigrants. 

Many actions have taken place in the last 10 years to both help and hurt immigrants coming to the US. In 2012 President Barack Obama signed the Deferred Action for Childhood also known as DACA. This act was designed to temporarily shield 800,000 dreamers from deportation (What is DACA). Although this was meant to help dreamers, it didn’t provide them a path to become a citizen of the States. Since 2012, President Trump has taken the immigration system into his own hands. By ending DACA he left those 800,000 immigrants in the dirt. They are no longer able to leave the US because if the chose to do so, they are not allowed back inside the borders. This act portrays as unfair since many of these children under DACA were brought here as babies. Popular internet star David Dobrik was brought here as a young child along with his family. The DACA program helped the Slovakian family create a new life for themselves. Today, Dobrik is faced with the fact that he could be deported at any time and although he often jokes about it, he took to Twitter to express his feelings towards the act of removing DACA. “I paid $400,000 in taxes last year and all I got was a free trip back to Slovakia #DefendDACA. ” He also writes: “I'm sorry to say I cannot attend Vidcon Australia, as of yesterday Trump has taken away all my travel privileges #DefendDACA”. Having such a platform on the internet helps Dobrik rise to action and stand up for those that don’t have a voice. It was not only him that stood up for him and his fellow dreamers, but former President Barack Obama who started the act also stated that removing DACA was “cruel and self-defeating”. 

With all of these people coming into action, it would be thought that Donald Trump would catch the hints. However, his arrogance caused him to believe that he is superior to the average person. As a result, a wall over the border between Mexico and the United States is in the process of building at the moment. Not only is this wall morally wrong, but it will also cost 5.6 billion dollars for a steel barrier around our southern border. Many people oppose the idea of creating a barrier. The U.S. representative Joaquin Castro states: “Building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border is a bad idea. It would stifle economic activity and drain money that’s badly needed to create jobs, fund schools, and repair beaten-up roads. The future of border security lies in manpower and smart technology, not medieval defenses.”  (Immigration 101). Mr. Castro’s points are completely accurate, instead of focusing on a solution of the past, the United States should worry less about harmless immigrants and more about every day worries. Instead of putting billions of dollars into the wall, it would be wise to consider financing our schools or giving money to climate change research. All in all, the 5.6 billion dollars going towards the wall should be discarded and given to causes that will help America. 

Immigration in the U.S. is a spiraling concept in today’s age. As a cause of this, many authors have decided to share their stories about the issue. “Americanized, Rebel Without a Green Card” is a memoir about the life of Sara Saedi. As a young girl, she came to the united states from Iran. The novel follows Sara around as she tries to navigate life in the States as a teen along with the hardships that come with immigration. As Sara evolves into a woman she is faced with many challenges. Some big, like the fact that she is illegal and could be sent back to Iran in the blink of an eye, and some of her smalle issues including, finding a prom date or not being able to wax her mustache until she was sixteen because her Iranian culture frowns upon that. In the chapter that Sara explained how her parents discarded the Iran stereotypes, a quote that I found particularly interesting was: “Most of all, they wanted us to take advantage of every opportunity afforded to us by living in the United States. In my not-so-humble opinion, I believe that immigrants are the true American patriots. We never take living in this country for granted.” I believe that this quote is incredibly important to the point that is being stressed in this essay. When Sara talks about being an immigrant in America and how she doesn’t take living here for granted, it makes me feel guilty that I have lived here without worry for the past 15 almost 16 years. To hear her story and get a full insight into the process it takes to become an American citizen is enlightening yet, eye-opening. 

As a kid, my eyes were pretty much closed towards the world. I went to a small school that consisted of sticky, white children that had never seen a minority in their small lifetime. In second grade, my friendship group shifted and I became good friends with a girl of another background, her family owned the local Chinese restaurant that was a special hangout place for all the older kids. The year went by fast, and before I knew it I graduated second grade and moved into third. On the first day, I was excited to see my friend, because we had lost connection over the summer, I scanned the playground. My confused pre-pubescent brain asked around for her and all I got were shrugs. It wasn’t until I talked to another girl; that she was better friends with; when I learned that over the summer she had moved away to New York City to join her family. Years later my mind finally understood why she had to leave. Being part of a small town is hard enough, but when you are different than every other white person it is even harder. I still do not know the whole story, but I guess that the feeling of being out of place overwhelmed the family. So they decided to leave and find somewhere that their children wouldn’t grow up and be stared at for being the only one that looks different. Although this story doesn’t have anything to do with immigration it still shows that racism doesn’t just have to be against immigrants. I feel ashamed to be part of a race that isn’t welcoming to everyone. From then on, in my third-grade head, I knew that I would be kind to anyone no matter their background. 

Unless you are 100% Native American, at one point your ancestors came over to America, in this case, we are all relatives of immigrants and it pains me to realize how badly others treat people that come here for a better life. It is not fair to exclude others just because they aren’t originally from here. The entire “mixing pot” will only get smaller and smaller, if we continue to filter out those who don’t meet a certain requirement. All the debate over immigration and the debacle of the wall along with the termination of DACA,  makes me wonder why should I get a fair shot at the American Dream if others can’t? 

Works Cited: 

"Immigration 101: Why the Border Wall is a Terrible Idea." America's voice, americasvoice.org/blog/immigration-101-border-wall-terrible-idea/. Accessed 15 Oct. 2019.

Saedi, Sara. Americanized: Rebel Without a Green Card. New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 2018.

"US immigration timeline." History, 14 May 2019, www.history.com/topics/immigration/immigration-united-states-timeline. Accessed 26 Sept. 2019.

"What is DACA and what does the Trump administration want to do with it?" Fox News, www.foxnews.com/politics/what-is-daca-and-what-does-the-trump-administration-want-to-do-with-it. Accessed 15 Oct. 2019.