Rooted in the Declaration of Independence, the American Dream was further generalized as “living a better life through hard work regardless of class and origin” in early-mid 20th century. For most white Americans in the years after World War Two, a better life means material abundance, social mobility upward, and perhaps advanced education for self and children. For those in poverty and minority, the dream would also include democracy and equality. While living standard can be generally improved by the rapid economic growth and the advancement of technology, civil rights and equality required much more effort to promote due to stubborn resistance within the nation. When many American citizens were approaching their goal of better material life,
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Kennedy soon realized the problem of poverty and the sluggish growth of economy, but his efforts such as tax cut turned out to be ineffective; his mixed responses to civil rights did not help African Americans much either. What was worse, Kennedy’s assassination in 1963 led to disillusionment of some people’s American Dream as many of them started to question the system and its credos. At the same time, African Americans furthered their actions against segregation, which provoked both support and resistance of white Americans. Although non-violence demonstrations were usually dealt with violent suppressions, increasingly more people paid attention to the issue, which promoted civil right movements by expanding its influence and calling for more help. In this way the American Dream for wealthier life and more peaceful environment seemed to collapse as the economy stagnated and the president assassinated; yet the rise of civil right movements and the legislations passed after Kennedy’s death would reinforce people’s faith in American Dream in making the world a better place. Taking his oath of office, Lyndon B. Johnson pushed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, and other provisions through the Congress, making huge contribution to eliminating discrimination based on gender and race. His actions also spurred the Congress to enact further social reforms to fight poverty in America. Reducing people in poverty, increasing funds for various beneficial programs, Johnson’s Great Society greatly improved American people’s living conditions by providing more comprehensive service and controlling inflation rates. In addition, the Warren Court under Johnson’s presidency was committed expanding individual rights. Such action can be viewed as approaching the liberty in American Dream. Despite of all these success, Lyndon Johnson’s presidency did not have a satisfactory end. Mired into the war at Vietnam, the United States had to
Kennedy soon realized the problem of poverty and the sluggish growth of economy, but his efforts such as tax cut turned out to be ineffective; his mixed responses to civil rights did not help African Americans much either. What was worse, Kennedy’s assassination in 1963 led to disillusionment of some people’s American Dream as many of them started to question the system and its credos. At the same time, African Americans furthered their actions against segregation, which provoked both support and resistance of white Americans. Although non-violence demonstrations were usually dealt with violent suppressions, increasingly more people paid attention to the issue, which promoted civil right movements by expanding its influence and calling for more help. In this way the American Dream for wealthier life and more peaceful environment seemed to collapse as the economy stagnated and the president assassinated; yet the rise of civil right movements and the legislations passed after Kennedy’s death would reinforce people’s faith in American Dream in making the world a better place. Taking his oath of office, Lyndon B. Johnson pushed the Civil Rights Act, the Voting Rights Act, and other provisions through the Congress, making huge contribution to eliminating discrimination based on gender and race. His actions also spurred the Congress to enact further social reforms to fight poverty in America. Reducing people in poverty, increasing funds for various beneficial programs, Johnson’s Great Society greatly improved American people’s living conditions by providing more comprehensive service and controlling inflation rates. In addition, the Warren Court under Johnson’s presidency was committed expanding individual rights. Such action can be viewed as approaching the liberty in American Dream. Despite of all these success, Lyndon Johnson’s presidency did not have a satisfactory end. Mired into the war at Vietnam, the United States had to