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Kayla Whitty

Mr. Pace

Honors Junior English

October 11, 2022

The Biased American Dream

Discrimination across the United States makes it impossible for people to achieve the

American Dream. The American Dream itself is the idea of having equal opportunities for goals

to be achieved, such as rising economically. But this idea becomes harder to achieve because of

the inequities that many Americans still face today. The discriminatory aspects presented in the

United States make it impossible for many people of different race or gender to achieve the

American Dream.

Hiring discrimination across the United States has made it so the American Dream

remains impossible to achieve for many black and Latino job applicants. In a field study that

accounted for education, gender, and market conditions, it was found that the “levels of

discrimination against black job applicants hasn’t changed since 1990” (Quillian et al.). In a

society that prides itself on inclusivity, hiring discrimination should have already been

eliminated. The study concluded that when companies received identical applications, white

applicants were receiving considerably more callbacks compared to black and Latino applicants,

with white applicants receiving “36% more callbacks than black applicants'' (Quillian et al.).

This hiring discrimination makes it impossible for many black and Latino applicants to even

consider the American Dream, which is supposed to mean equal opportunities. Rising

economically is dependent on employment, showing that the discrimination in the United States

makes it impossible for people of different races to achieve this abstract dream. This same idea
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was also demonstrated in another randomized field experiment where facilitators randomly

assigned either a “black” sounding name or a “white” sounding name to a résumé in order to test

which was more likely to be hired even if another candidate was better qualified: “Resumes with

white-sounding names received 50 percent more callbacks than those with black-sounding

names” (Discrimination in the job market in the United States: The abdul latif jameel poverty

action lab). Even though discrimination based on race was made illegal in 1964, many people

will still choose the “whiter” sounding name when choosing between the two, putting people of

color at a disadvantage when pursuing careers. This study helped build onto the first study listed,

proving that despite the numerous laws that are in place to stop discrimination from occurring,

people of color are continuosally not given equal opportunities to help them rise economically.

The two sources are also able to provide different perspectives, with Quillian focusing on both

black and latino applicants, and the poverty action lab focusing on the sole comparison between

white and black. Although both sources give an account of discrimination, the first study had

clear parameters, sharing the race of applicants, while the second study focused on assumptions.

Assumptions made in the second study are proof that people will take away equal opportunity

based on preconceived notions, such as a name sounding “white” or “black”. When people are

discriminated against because of their race, it makes it harder for them to find jobs that will

support their goals. Even though discrimination was outlawed, people are still taught aspects of

racism that have been present in the United States for centuries. It has been made apparent that a

law will not change how people think, but changing how the nation teaches could make people

clearly identify the inequalities that are seen across the United States, encouraging them to help

stop discrimination that leads to black and latino applicants being blocked from achieving the

American Dream.
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Discrimination against women in the job market is something that has gained attention

due to its heavy presence on social media. This discrimination can typically look two different

ways. Women are either presumed as not being able to handle a job or the physical capacities it

requires, or they don’t receive equal pay in comparison to their male counterparts. In the book

Behold the Dreamers written by Imbolo Mbue, Neni is looking to pursue a job as a pharmacist

and goes to the Dean of her school to discuss the path she should take, but when telling him of

her aspirations, he responds, “Perhaps another career path may be better suited for someone like

you” (Mbue 296), referring to the fact that Neni was juggling children, school, and work. He was

implying that she could not handle working for a degree on top of her other responsibilities,

despite her husband, Jende, having the same responsibilities. The difference between the two is

that Jende is encouraged to pursue any dreams he may have, but Neni is discouraged because of

her gender and the gender roles typically assigned to women. This is just one example of many,

with women in the workforce being questioned in regards to how much they can handle, making

it impossible for them to rise economically. Mbue’s writing connects to hiring discrimination

topics covered by Quillian and The Poverty Action Lab, with people not being hired due to

preconceived notions that are associated with both race and gender. On top of the biases that

women face, there is also the significant wage gap that has not made any significant

improvement. When comparing the pay of a woman to a man’s singular dollar, the gap may not

appear significant, but a collection of data concluded that “it would take an extra 42 days of work

for women to earn what men did in 2020” (Barroso and Brown). This means that even if women

continue to work the same amount of time as men, they will always be at an automatic

disadvantage because of the gap between their wages. The research done by Barroso and Brown

ties all of the studies together, showing that discrimination in the workforce has made it
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impossible to achieve the American Dream. All sources tie their conclusions to a common cause,

discrimination, meaning that if there was not discrimination in the workforce, many would be

given the opportunity to rise economically. A cycle of learned helplessness also plays a role in

the continuous discrimination, making people believe that they are not capable of achieving what

others were able to achieve, making many dismiss the wage gap that is putting them at a

disadvantage. Women are not a stranger to being discriminated against, but when it comes to

something that everyone should have, such as equal opportunities, it is only fair that women are

given the same opportunity as men to work towards their goal, which means no wage gap and no

presumption of what can be handled.

When thinking about the discrimination that frequently happens in the United States, you

may not be thinking about how it directly affects people’s ability to achieve the American

Dream. These texts all directly relate to how people’s discrimination can make it impossible for

others to achieve the American Dream. If people aren't given the opportunity to achieve the

American Dream, laws should be put in place nation-wide that ensure equal job opportunities,

education, and pay. If any part of an individual’s definition of the American Dream includes

equal opportunity, that dream is already over.

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Works Cited

Barroso, Amanda, and Anna Brown. “Gender Pay Gap in U.S. Held Steady in 2020.” Pew

Research Center, Pew Research Center, 25 May 2021,

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/05/25/gender-pay-gap-facts/.

“Discrimination in the Job Market in the United States: The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty

Action Lab.” The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL), 2004,

https://www.povertyactionlab.org/evaluation/discrimination-job-market-united-state

s.

Mbue, Imbolo. Behold the Dreamers. Large Print Press, a Part of Gale, Cengage Learning,

2017.

Quillian, Lincoln, et al. “Hiring Discrimination against black Americans Hasn't Declined in

25 Years.” Harvard Business Review, 11 Oct. 2017,

https://hbr.org/2017/10/hiring-discrimination-against-black-americans-hasnt-decline

d-in-25-years.
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American Dream Essay Rubric

Skill Not Foundational Proficient Advanced

Yet
Identifies a topic Appears in first Thesis establishes a
paragraph complex claim

Thesis establishes a
topic and a claim

Thesis Comments:

Includes two or Includes multiple Includes specific,

fewer sources pieces of evidence meaningful, and
(from 4 sources) well-chosen
Some evidence that clearly relate to evidence that relates
relates to the thesis the thesis to the thesis

Includes multiple
Evidence pieces of evidence in
each body
paragraph

Comments:

Summarizes sources Explains how Explains

evidence supports well-selected points
topic sentence of of comparison
individual among sources and
paragraphs evidence and their
connection to the
Analysis Explains how thesis
evidence supports
the thesis of the
essay
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Comments:

Little connection Explains how the Clearly explains

between texts; texts/sources are relationships among
difficult for the related, though texts (how they
reader to see how points could be confirm or challenge
the texts are related more selective or each other, build on
better developed each other, provide
Synthesis differing
Includes multiple perspectives, etc.)
sources in each body
paragraph

Comments:

Some elements Heading is correctly No errors in MLA

missing or some formatted format
errors in MLA format
Pages are numbered

In-text citations are

correctly formatted

Works Cited format:

hanging indent,
MLA Format double-spaced,
alphabetized, starts
on a new page

Works Cited: each

source entry is in
correct MLA format
Comments:

Shows evidence of Most quotes are All quotes are

basic proofreading correctly integrated correctly integrated
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Follows essay Shows evidence of

organization careful proofreading
Conventions
Shows evidence of
proofreading

Comments: