America has lost grasp of the American Dream. To many families, the white picket fence, 2.5 kids and 1-2 vacations per year no longer seems feasible. With the stock market plummeting, due to Trump’s reckless tariffs, it is a wonder if the American Dream will ever again be a reality.
While the public focus has been thrust into a fight for equality, whether culturally, racially or on the basis of gender, the top 1% has been using this imbalance as fodder to continue their race for wealth and power.
Since 1979, wages of the top 1% in America have grown 182%, while the wages for the bottom 90% grew only 44% according to The Economic Policy Institute. Coupled with significant price increases of goods due to inflation, it is no surprise that Americans can no longer afford the price of eggs. Almost 6% of Americans work multiple jobs in order to make ends meet and put food on the table. Accounting for volatility, that’s the highest level it has been since 2009 during the Great Recession.
This decline is not new: the other 99% have been suffering from the rising wealth gap for years. Trump’s tariffs have simply unveiled an issue that has been persistent for decades. True, President Biden’s economy showed strong wage growth, and yes, his America Rescue Plan achieved the lowest unemployment rate and strongest wage growth in 50 years. But, unfortunately, these were not permanent fixes for a long-term decline in wellbeing—a trend which likely led to the election of President Trump: According to The Associated Press, voters who felt economically vulnerable were more likely to vote for President Trump.
Though Biden attempted to boost the economy, financial prosperity was not felt by those working paycheck to paycheck. According to a NewsNation Poll, 58% of voters stated they were living paycheck to paycheck, so when Trump told them he would lead to economic prosperity by putting “America first”, they believed him. During his last term, Trump made cuts to many government assistance programs including job training programs, food assistance and healthcare programs that largely benefited low and middle class constituents. This time Trump promised that, through the removal of immigrants and placing tariffs on shipments from overseas, money would be returning to American pockets. As many are now learning, this is far from the case.
Economic growth does not mean much if wealth distribution remains at an all-time low. In the United States, the top 0.1 percent of earners held approximately 14 % of the total wealth in 2024 while the lowest 50 % held only 2.5 percent according to The Federal Reserve. A deeper dive shows that America’s GINI coefficient, which is a measure of income inequality — the higher the number the more inequality— is at 41.3% percent while countries such as Iceland and Ukraine sit at 26.1%, and 25.6% respectively. The US has more income inequality than any other country with a similar GDP.
It does not have to be this way. There are many solutions: Iceland’s Act on Equal Treatment in the Labor Market and Equal Pay policy, ensures everyone, regardless of race, gender or religious background gets paid a proper living wage. Finland utilizes progressive taxation to fund public institutions and social programs available to everyone. Finally The Netherlands provides a social assistance safety net for anyone earning below the threshold of a minimum living wage and an unconditional pension that each citizen is entitled to after reaching official retirement age.
To be sure, in an administration run by billionaires, passing legislation to reduce wealth inequality seems a non-starter. However if we do not acknowledge this deep, long term problem, the American dream will continue to slip further out of reach. And surely, preventing another Great Depression is a bipartisan issue (or at least it should be).
What we need now is the political courage to admit that the American dream is no longer achievable for most families, as many are struggling to make ends meet. We need leaders who still understand the value of that dream and will make it a reality for everyone—not just the 1%.