Equal Opportunity In America

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America was founded on ideas of freedom and opportunities, yet for the last quarter of a century we have not upheld these ideas. In America we have less equality for opportunity than almost any other advanced industrial country. This is due to a number of things, such as: location, discrimination, and social immobility. Location plays a large role in the opportunities that are presented to you. For example, a young boy born in northern California and a young boy born in Alabama whose parents were of the same race, social class, and religion would not be given equal chances at the same careers. The boy in California would be more likely to do well in a career such as filmmaking or acting, where as the boy from Alabama would be better equipped in agriculture. These two careers have a drastic annual salary difference but because of the location they were each born into the opportunities were simply not available to both boys. One of the most controversial factors in the debate would be discrimination. Whether it is racial or gender based this is one of the strongest barriers between classes. …show more content…
It has been argued that all people of all ethnicities and all social classes have the legal right to hold any position or career we choose. Therefore, we have equal opportunities. However, poorer people truly have fewer opportunities to succeed. In America, people of the same income level tend to live in the same areas. Our schools are largely funded by taxes from the local area. Consequently, schools in low-income areas are not as well funded as schools in high-income areas resulting in an inequivalent opportunity for a reputable education. Leading later to fewer kids graduating and going on to receive a higher education so that they can get into better careers allowing them to move up in social

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