The Undermining of the American Dream through Illegal Immigration

Essay from the year 2010 in the subject American Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 1,0, University of Leipzig (Institut für Amerikanistik), course: American Dream, language: English, abstract: The United States of America is often referred to as 'a nation of immigrants'. Over centuries, the prospect of achieving the American Dream has attracted immigrants from all over the world to the country. However, in recent decades many immigrants entered the USA illegally or stayed on after their visas had expired. Actually, the approximated number of undocumented immigrants currently living in the USA widely ranges from '11.5 million to 20 million' (Orchowski 2008, 69), the majority of them hailing from Latin American countries. This uncontrolled influx of immigrants causes various problems in the host nation. Illegal immigration from South and Central America to the USA undermines core elements of the American Dream such as the opportunity of climbing the social ladder, security of life and liberty, and America's social security for everyone living in the U.S.