The American Dream after COVID-19

By

Paul J. Croce

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A protestor at an Occupy Portland demonstration.

The American Nightmare

A protestor at an Occupy Portland demonstration in 2011.

President Barack Obama delivers remarks on housing and home ownership.

Home Ownership

President Barack Obama delivers remarks on housing and home ownership at Desert Vista High School in Phoenix, AZ, 2013.

1869 Swedish anti-emigration poster.

Leaving for America

European governments, worried that their best young people would leave for America, distributed posters like this to frighten them (this 1869 Swedish anti-emigration poster contrasts Per Svensson's dream of the American idyll (left) and the reality of his life in the wilderness (right), where he is menaced by a mountain lion, a big snake and wild Indians who are scalping and disembowelling someone).

Immigrants undergoing medical examination in New York.

Immigrants Undergoing Medical Exam

Immigrants undergoing medical examination in New York upon their entrance into the United States c. 1902-1913.

Discarded vending machines in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Leftovers of Mass Consumerism

Discarded vending machines in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This waste is a symptom of mass consumerism and material desire.

Historian James Truslow Adams.

James Truslow Adams

Historian James Truslow Adams, who coined the term "The American Dream."

Requiem for the American Dream.

Requiem for the American Dream

Requiem for the American Dream: Unemployed men at the White Angel Breadline in San Francisco, California 1933.

Uncle Sam kicks out Chinese immigrants in an anti-immigration cartoon.

Anti-Immigration Cartoon

Uncle Sam kicks out Chinese immigrants, referring both to the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, and also to the "Magic Washer." The actual purpose of the poster was to promote the "George Dee Magic Washer," which the machine's manufacturers clearly hoped would displace Chinese laundry operators, 1886.

A protest sign from the Climate Change Camp in 2007.

Listen to the Cries of Our World

A protest sign from the Climate Change Camp in 2007 at Heathrow Airport in London. The Anthropocene Era has brought about these 'cries.'

Examples of Zoonotic diseases and their affected populations.

Zoonotic Diseases

Examples of Zoonotic diseases and their affected populations.

Caricature of American expansionism and racism.

A Lesson from the US

Caricature of American expansionism and racism showing Uncle Sam lecturing four children labelled Philippines, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and Cuba in front of children holding books labelled with various U.S. states. In the background are a Native American child holding a book upside down, a Chinese boy at the door, and an African American boy cleaning a window. Originally published in the January 25, 1899 issue of Puck magazine.

President George W. Bush delivers remarks at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in Washington, D.C., 2003.

A Home of Your Own

During the signing ceremony of S. 811, The American Dream Downpayment Act, President George W. Bush delivers remarks at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in Washington, D.C., 2003. Home Ownership is often cited as the hallmark of the American Dream but can also cause economic downfall when lending practices become inflated.

Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The Civil Rights Act

Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Among the guests behind him is Martin Luther King, Jr.

President Donald J. Trump at a rally in 2017.

Buy American - Hire American

President Donald J. Trump at a rally in 2017. His remarks included the hope that American workers, families and dreams would come first again.

President Barack Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan visit a classroom.

Barack Obama at P-TECH

President Barack Obama and Education Secretary Arne Duncan visit a classroom at the Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) in Brooklyn, N.Y., 2013.

A stop sign in Southeastern Ohio.

Stop Strip Mining

A stop sign in Southeastern Ohio spray-painted in opposition to constant strip mining, 1973.

Paul J. Croce's book.

Young William James Thinking

Author, Paul J. Croce's book entitled Young William James Thinking (2017). Image courtesy of the author.

City of Portland Landfill.

Portland Landfill

City of Portland Landfill, 1973. Mass consumerism has produced mass waste.

Minimalist lifestyle in a van.

Minimalist Lifestyle

As mass consumerism became the norm in the United States, many chose a minimalist lifestyle often in vans, micro-apartments, or cabins. This lifestyle emphasizes living with sufficient but not excessive resources to enjoy experiences more than goods.

A solar powered EV charging station.

Solar Powered Charging Station

A solar powered EV charging station. Sustainable changes like these, while not systemic, do address pressing issues with plausible solutions.

Cartoon depicting the state of the restaurant industry by Adam Zyglis.

Throwing Away the American Dream

Cartoon depicting the state of the restaurant industry by Adam Zyglis, The Buffalo News, NY (published with permission).

A poster from 1942 made by The Sheldon-Claire Company.

This Is America

A poster from 1942 made by The Sheldon-Claire Company to promote the U.S. Government's version of The American Dream during World War II.

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