“How did you sleep last night?” A man asked his wife.
“Very well, actually. I dreamed of America.” She replied, her eyes bright with hope. Hope of a better and safer future for her daughter with whom she will soon move to a foreign land with promised opportunities. To her, a place where her life wasn’t endangered simply because she was a Jewish woman was a major part of her American Dream.
During the late 1900s, the anti-semitic violence that took place in the Soviet Union forced many families to leave. America was a common destination as it was where anyone, regardless of their religion, could build their life anew – without being put at a disadvantage because of who they are. Or at least, that was what the American Dream suggested. For the women—along with all the other Soviet Jews—Judaism was a nationality; not a religion. While in the Soviet Union, it was a life-sentence on her passport. The burden of being born a Jew shadowed her family, causing them to face discrimination everywhere they went.
Thus, when on December 10th, 1990, the Soviet Jewry Vigil — a movement that involved daily campaigning to pressure the Soviet government to allow Jewish emigration — ended after twenty years. Nearly 182,000 Jews [left] the Soviet Union for Israel, and thousands more for the United States. Fleeing a country that denied Jews the freedoms they deserved, the woman was desperate to live out her American Dream in the United States.
For her and for millions of others seeking refuge in the states, the idea represented by the phrase “the American Dream” was a life of security, opportunity and stability. Their definition was in line with that of America’s Founding Fathers, who defined the term as the belief that no matter one’s origin, they are capable of achieving life, liberty, happiness and security. However, since the late eighteenth century, the term has evolved to also include home ownership because the idea of freedom that comes with owning property gives a higher status to an American.
Upward progress is another aspect that is commonly associated with the American Dream; particularly, the hope that the future generation will live a better life and achieve greater success in realizing their American Dream. All this was what motivated the woman to leave everything behind, in hopes of providing her daughter with a more fulfilled life.
However, obtaining this American Dream was not an easy feat. In America, while the woman was no longer seen as an outcast because of her nationality, she was now dismissed by many because of her limited English vocabulary and strong accent. Once in the Soviet Union a dentist and her husband a military engineer, now, they were not those people. They were forced to leave all that behind in order to start over for the sake of their safety and that of their daughter, with just a few hundred dollars at their disposal.
The husband worked two jobs, sweeping the streets of Brooklyn as a janitor, while the woman worked tirelessly to get into New York University and obtain her medical degree, for a second time. Both worked relentlessly, day and night, earning minimum wage and learning English during any free time they had. When the women finally got accepted to NYU, they had to take out a substantial loan, praying that everything would work out and they would be able to pay it off. Moreover, the woman was by far the oldest student in her classes, causing her to be looked down upon because of her age.
While the American Dream promised fairness for all, the woman’s journey of obtaining the dream showed her that, at times, everything wasn’t exactly as the dream had promised. Nonetheless, she knew that to reach her American Dream, she had to sleep through a bit of an American Nightmare while contemplating whether this was the right decision, especially during those countless sleepless nights.
As a result of years of hard work, the woman was successful in achieving her American Dream. She opened her own dental office, bought a house with her husband, and supported her daughter in any way she could. Her journey became proof of the fact that with determination and resilience, one is capable of achieving their American Dream. It will most certainly be difficult, but not impossible with the right attitude and intentions.
Growing up as a first generation American, I witnessed firsthand the transformative power of the American Dream. That woman is my very own grandmother. Her story is a representation of how the American Dream can be reached because, despite being faced with numerous setbacks and challenges, through hard work she has built a better future for herself and her family. So, in this way, my grandparents achieved the quintessential American Dream: homeownership, financial stability and opportunities.
In contemporary America, the American Dream continues to face new challenges and opportunities. Economic inequality, social injustice, and systemic barriers hinder the realization of the American Dream for many, particularly marginalized individuals.
However, amidst these challenges, there are also signs of hope.
Almost two years ago, at the start of the war in Ukraine, our family friends immigrated to the United States in search of safety. Leaving everything behind, they came on parole and found jobs to support their family. Today, both of their children are thriving in school and already have big dreams for their future education in America.
For my family, it began with my grandmother’s dream and the need to escape religious persecution; for the Ukrainian family it was the terrors of war.
For each and every family, the journey to the American Dream is unique and deeply personal, but it is the hope of a better tomorrow and hard work that brings them closer to it. For my grandmother, that hope continues to be that her daughter and grandchildren can go to bed and sleep well, knowing that they can achieve their American Dream.
