Running head: THE “LAND OF OPPORTUNITY”
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The “Land of Opportunity”:
Addressing Equality in the United States
James S. Niekamp
University of Toledo
Running head: THE “LAND OF OPPORTUNITY”
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Hoping to find a direct route west from Europe to Asia, Christopher Columbus explored
the Atlantic, but instead he found America. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark embarked on a
three year, 8,000-mile journey across what is now the United States. Martin Luther King, Jr. led
the American Civil Rights Movement to fight for the equality of African-Americans in the
United States. These figures from the history of America all found an “opportunity” in which
they fought hard to pursue, and they have paved the way to give everyone an equal opportunity.
Alongside their efforts, efforts for supremacy and segregation have also coexisted. Therefore, the
United States and the society we live in must focus more on achieving equality than it has in the
past.
Patriotism has held constant in American history no matter what race, and patriotism is
needed to ensure equality. It may be hard to compare patriotism to equality; however, patriotism
promotes equality. In my opinion, patriotism is the belief in one’s country, and knowing what
one’s country stands for, and I believe my country to stand for equality (among other things).
Even early colonists had a sense of patriotism towards Great Britain which prevented them from
wanting separation. As shown in 1776, the main reason for colonists to believe that they should
not declare independence was that they felt they were being “patriotic towards their mother
country” by fighting against independence or they did not “feel oppressively taxed by Britain”
(Stone). It is obvious that patriotism, love, and honor can stir a great deal of motivation in
people, and therefore our government—through law and leadership—needs to make a change in
policy to appeal to patriotism and ensure equality among its citizens.
First, there is the topic of immigration. Some people want harsh immigration laws, and
others want a laissez faire approach to immigration. Either way immigration policy needs a
facelift. The “American Dream” that anyone who comes to the United States will have an
Running head: THE “LAND OF OPPORTUNITY”
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opportunity to succeed still exists in many immigrants. In an a detailed article about the
“American Dream” and immigration, multiple authors describe how “The American Dream
focuses on many outcomes” and describes some of these main outcomes as “economic success,
mobility, liberty, stability, and escape” (Knight 829). To ensure an equal opportunity at the
“American Dream”, policy should be enabled so that anyone who wants to enter the country will
be able to (yes, without having to climb a wall) if they do it legally.
In parallelism with this policy, more changes should be made so that legal immigration is
inexpensive or free, and will be able to be done within days. More focus should be put on legal
immigration to expedite the process and persuade immigrants to legally enter the country.
Immigration is the first step to ensuring equality. Everyone having an equal opportunity to live in
