The Chinese American Dream
From the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act to today
The term ‘American Dream’ has become such a universally known idea that it has come to hold a multitude of meanings throughout the years. In the 17th century, the term encompassed all those who left the Old World in Europe to seek a better life of freedom and opportunity in the New World. In the 1950s, after the end of World War II, the American Dream meant aiming for home ownership and starting a family (Brohl). Since the very founding of the United States, the pursuit of the American Dream has played a crucial role in what it means to be American.
What exactly is the American Dream? The Oxford English Dictionary defines it as “the ideal by which equality of opportunity is available to any American, allowing the highest aspirations and goals to be achieved.” Dictionary.com defines it as “the aspirational belief in the U.S. that all individuals are entitled to the opportunity for success and upward mobility through hard work.” The notion of the American Dream has also been commonly associated with “the ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity” purportedly available to all Americans regardless of social class (“American Dream”). Although the term is now seemingly ubiquitous both in the United States and abroad, it was not coined until 1931, over three centuries after the Mayflower arrived in New…
