Interview 1: Stacy Amezcua
Q What is the American Dream to you?
A The American dream is the possibility of living my life on my own terms. I feel appreciation for my country that I can choose what I want to be I can choose my priorities and I have the best possibility being in this country of making those choices a reality. I feel it's more important now than ever to impress upon my children their god given rights of individual choice and then not allowing our government to impede that process. I whole heartedly believe in the power of the people. It is the people of this country that have made it great. The individual's dream, individual's hardship, and the individual's triumph that have made this country great in every circumstance.
Q Do you think that the American Dream is misunderstood as get rich quick? If yes, why do you think that people favor money over their own values?
A Absolutely! Unfortunately with the advent of TV the marketing agenda has proliferated throughout our country like cancer; telling people what is they most desire. My great grandparents came to this country from Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, and England with religious ideals and desire to belong something larger than themselves. They ended up owning much of southern Utah and my great grandfather, while the first in his family to speak English, and became a huge banker and eventually governor of Utah. While this monetary success is what many people think the American dream is. To my family it was living their lives with purpose and being apart of something larger than themselves.
Q How have you live your American Dream?
A While I haven't yet fulfilled or sought my personal potential I feel very fortunate that I have been able to spend the time and energy and have the economic ability to give my children the start they need to find their own answers. Again I cannot stress how grateful I am that we live in a country where I'm able to provide food, clothing, shelter, and hope for my children.
Q How have you taught your children the value of the American Dream?
A It's imperative through my actions which my children have always been privy to, that they understand their inherent rights as human beings. I truly believe that all beings are created equally and those born into privilege have responsibility. Although I have embarrassed my children many times they have witnessed first hand asserting my expectations as an individual for respect from government leaders, doctors, business leaders, school officials, etc. I absolutely expect for my children that they exercise their rights as Americans to assert their individual influence over their own individual destiny.
Synopsis: Stacy Amezcua always wanted to live her life as she saw fit. Yet she is not successful in establishing her own needs, and she strives though she gets frustrated when certain institutions dictate what she should feel and control. She either hat to compromise or assert herself as a consumer and rights as a person. And sometimes she has to pick her battles and move on or else her time and energy would be wasted. That is why she hates politicians who try to rule the citizens' lives and is happy to speak out because she can. "It is our country and not the opportunists who administrate it…Even though there are many liars, enough people believe in the basic human freedoms that it why evil will not win". Being aware of reality is important especially now, she says. It is important for people to open their eyes and see what's going on around them.
Interview 2: Oscar Amezcua
Q What is the American Dream to you?
A It's the pursuit of your personal happiness. Being able the things you want to do in peace and freedom. There are still a lot of countries that don't give you the opportunity to choose your own career.
Q Do you think that the American Dream is misunderstood as get rich quick? If yes, why do you think that people favor money over their own values?
A Yes, because people have been trained to consume instead of looking for ways to fulfill them. Entertainment has taken the place of education. People rather are entertained instead of learning what is in the world. Too many of us have become lazy.
Q How have you live your American Dream?
A I'm still working on it. I try to live each day the best I can, try to do my job the best way, try to help people: get out of debt, best loan, and best way to help them save money. I'm trying to give my contribution.
Q How have you taught your children the value of the American Dream
A By advising them to be aware of everything around them. Trying to make sure they understand the value of their own opinion by learning. Learn to be a person who is able to assert an opinion and able to find your own information and not letting the media wash their brains. It takes work to live in this world, and people don't take that serious enough because they liked to be entertained.
Synopsis: Oscar Amezcua, originally from Mexico City, pursued to live the American dream to escape the pessimism of his culture. His first obstacle was getting to the US. Mexico's education and rate was low at the time and he wanted to come to the US for opportunity in schooling. However, he faced prejudice since plenty of people in the US didn't like him for his thick accent and Mexican heritage. Of course he could only stay in the US if he had a student Visa and even this took a long time to get, 8 months. After the exorbitant amount of paperwork and time he finally arrived in California where some of his relatives lived. Unfortunately some of his relatives weren't going to give him a warm welcome. It was hard for him to find a place to stay. Even with all the negative events happening around Oscar still had a positive attitude. He says that, "Every time life presents itself with a challenge you have to look at the opportunities you and not wait for what happens, every nook and cranny must be searched to find an answer". Eventually his cousin Arturo was more than glad to be room mates with him.
Q What is the American Dream to you?
A The American dream is the possibility of living my life on my own terms. I feel appreciation for my country that I can choose what I want to be I can choose my priorities and I have the best possibility being in this country of making those choices a reality. I feel it's more important now than ever to impress upon my children their god given rights of individual choice and then not allowing our government to impede that process. I whole heartedly believe in the power of the people. It is the people of this country that have made it great. The individual's dream, individual's hardship, and the individual's triumph that have made this country great in every circumstance.
Q Do you think that the American Dream is misunderstood as get rich quick? If yes, why do you think that people favor money over their own values?
A Absolutely! Unfortunately with the advent of TV the marketing agenda has proliferated throughout our country like cancer; telling people what is they most desire. My great grandparents came to this country from Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, and England with religious ideals and desire to belong something larger than themselves. They ended up owning much of southern Utah and my great grandfather, while the first in his family to speak English, and became a huge banker and eventually governor of Utah. While this monetary success is what many people think the American dream is. To my family it was living their lives with purpose and being apart of something larger than themselves.
Q How have you live your American Dream?
A While I haven't yet fulfilled or sought my personal potential I feel very fortunate that I have been able to spend the time and energy and have the economic ability to give my children the start they need to find their own answers. Again I cannot stress how grateful I am that we live in a country where I'm able to provide food, clothing, shelter, and hope for my children.
Q How have you taught your children the value of the American Dream?
A It's imperative through my actions which my children have always been privy to, that they understand their inherent rights as human beings. I truly believe that all beings are created equally and those born into privilege have responsibility. Although I have embarrassed my children many times they have witnessed first hand asserting my expectations as an individual for respect from government leaders, doctors, business leaders, school officials, etc. I absolutely expect for my children that they exercise their rights as Americans to assert their individual influence over their own individual destiny.
Synopsis: Stacy Amezcua always wanted to live her life as she saw fit. Yet she is not successful in establishing her own needs, and she strives though she gets frustrated when certain institutions dictate what she should feel and control. She either hat to compromise or assert herself as a consumer and rights as a person. And sometimes she has to pick her battles and move on or else her time and energy would be wasted. That is why she hates politicians who try to rule the citizens' lives and is happy to speak out because she can. "It is our country and not the opportunists who administrate it…Even though there are many liars, enough people believe in the basic human freedoms that it why evil will not win". Being aware of reality is important especially now, she says. It is important for people to open their eyes and see what's going on around them.
Interview 2: Oscar Amezcua
Q What is the American Dream to you?
A It's the pursuit of your personal happiness. Being able the things you want to do in peace and freedom. There are still a lot of countries that don't give you the opportunity to choose your own career.
Q Do you think that the American Dream is misunderstood as get rich quick? If yes, why do you think that people favor money over their own values?
A Yes, because people have been trained to consume instead of looking for ways to fulfill them. Entertainment has taken the place of education. People rather are entertained instead of learning what is in the world. Too many of us have become lazy.
Q How have you live your American Dream?
A I'm still working on it. I try to live each day the best I can, try to do my job the best way, try to help people: get out of debt, best loan, and best way to help them save money. I'm trying to give my contribution.
Q How have you taught your children the value of the American Dream
A By advising them to be aware of everything around them. Trying to make sure they understand the value of their own opinion by learning. Learn to be a person who is able to assert an opinion and able to find your own information and not letting the media wash their brains. It takes work to live in this world, and people don't take that serious enough because they liked to be entertained.
Synopsis: Oscar Amezcua, originally from Mexico City, pursued to live the American dream to escape the pessimism of his culture. His first obstacle was getting to the US. Mexico's education and rate was low at the time and he wanted to come to the US for opportunity in schooling. However, he faced prejudice since plenty of people in the US didn't like him for his thick accent and Mexican heritage. Of course he could only stay in the US if he had a student Visa and even this took a long time to get, 8 months. After the exorbitant amount of paperwork and time he finally arrived in California where some of his relatives lived. Unfortunately some of his relatives weren't going to give him a warm welcome. It was hard for him to find a place to stay. Even with all the negative events happening around Oscar still had a positive attitude. He says that, "Every time life presents itself with a challenge you have to look at the opportunities you and not wait for what happens, every nook and cranny must be searched to find an answer". Eventually his cousin Arturo was more than glad to be room mates with him.
Interview 3: Shannon Mathis
Shannon Mathis has worked at least 50 years of her life and started at the early age of 10. In these young ages she worked at neighborhood yards and malt shops while she was going to high school. Working summer jobs would help pay for her college since her family couldn't afford tuition. It was assumed in her generation that the government and Social Security would take care of her retirement. However, she found out her spending and spending on her young daughters would have to stop since she needed to start saving for her own retirement. Fortunately she took matters in her own hands and made wise decisions to invest. Although it was hard to part from her usual spending, it made up for it in the future. She learned it takes patience and knowledge to succeed in the financial world.
Reflection: Although it seems as though the American dream is based on status and keeping up with pop culture, to some people the Dream invests in the individual. When the pilgrim's first arrived in the New World, there was no money, entertainment, and specific norm. It was about setting up life again. Their sole intent purpose was to escape Britain, the norm, to set up their own separate life style. Eventually war broke out questioning the true independence of these colonists. And even if it seemed impossible, these colonists won and embraced their freedom they earned through their blood, sweat, and tears. Before then it was just a dream, the dream to believe that one could escape the tyranny of others. Now, our opportunities have increased; however, we are blinded by the media telling us what hip, cool is, or in. It is then the opportunities to educate ourselves are viewed upon as geeky and for smart people. The initiative to work hard is questioned. People now want to become singers, athletes, or actors. Those who don't want to work look at fall back on their false hopes to safeguard their laziness. The American dream is then a get rich quick process. Fortunately there are enough people to believe in themselves and their own strength to break away from the cycle. There is enough faith in the individual to lure people away from the media's sweet song. That is the very value America was built upon.
Shannon Mathis has worked at least 50 years of her life and started at the early age of 10. In these young ages she worked at neighborhood yards and malt shops while she was going to high school. Working summer jobs would help pay for her college since her family couldn't afford tuition. It was assumed in her generation that the government and Social Security would take care of her retirement. However, she found out her spending and spending on her young daughters would have to stop since she needed to start saving for her own retirement. Fortunately she took matters in her own hands and made wise decisions to invest. Although it was hard to part from her usual spending, it made up for it in the future. She learned it takes patience and knowledge to succeed in the financial world.
Reflection: Although it seems as though the American dream is based on status and keeping up with pop culture, to some people the Dream invests in the individual. When the pilgrim's first arrived in the New World, there was no money, entertainment, and specific norm. It was about setting up life again. Their sole intent purpose was to escape Britain, the norm, to set up their own separate life style. Eventually war broke out questioning the true independence of these colonists. And even if it seemed impossible, these colonists won and embraced their freedom they earned through their blood, sweat, and tears. Before then it was just a dream, the dream to believe that one could escape the tyranny of others. Now, our opportunities have increased; however, we are blinded by the media telling us what hip, cool is, or in. It is then the opportunities to educate ourselves are viewed upon as geeky and for smart people. The initiative to work hard is questioned. People now want to become singers, athletes, or actors. Those who don't want to work look at fall back on their false hopes to safeguard their laziness. The American dream is then a get rich quick process. Fortunately there are enough people to believe in themselves and their own strength to break away from the cycle. There is enough faith in the individual to lure people away from the media's sweet song. That is the very value America was built upon.
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