American Privilege
Americans enjoy copious civil liberties, as the American Bill of Rights exemplifies. Freedom of speech, religious liberty, and press rights. It is the number one country sought after by most immigrants. That promised land of the ‘American dream,’ and yet it seems to be a country hated by the young people who carry its passport.
WHAT IS AMERICAN PRIVILEGE
According to journalist Chad E. Cooper, it is a concept initially developed by immigrant descendants of Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. It has nothing to do with race, religion, or ethnic background. A concept tested and fortified throughout the history of America, it is a mindset that there are opportunities here that don’t exist in most other places in the world. It’s the ability for anyone living in this country to have freedoms and opportunities they may not have had before. It’s the knowing that no matter where you’re from, you can reach your full abilities despite any diversity.
MOST SOUGHT AFTER COUNTRY FOR FOREIGNERS
For centuries, the United States has been the ‘new world,’ the ‘promised land,’ the country behind a large ocean that will mean a better future for immigrant families. According to the most recent UN Population Division data from mid-2020, the United States is home to more international migrants than any other country and more than the next four countries—Germany, Saudi Arabia, Russia, and the United Kingdom—combined. While the U.S. population represents about 5 percent of the total world population, close to 20 percent of all global migrants reside in the United States. Nearly 46.2 million immigrants lived in the United States in 2022, the most in U.S. history.
In fiscal year (FY) 2023, the State Department issued a staggering 10.4 million temporary visas for tourists, international students, and others, a significant increase from 8.7 million in FY 2019. This upward trend is mirrored inside the United States, where the 969,000 immigrants who became citizens in FY 2022, after spending years as lawful permanent residents (LPRs, or green card holders), represented the largest naturalization total since FY 2008.
I am one of these legal immigrants. I am from Estonia, and my husband is a Chilean. We both have green cards and can apply for passports this year. With our professional tennis background and my international law degree, we could have chosen any place in the world, but we knew there was no other place like the United States. And that’s after traveling to more than 150 countries combined and really seeing how people live in different parts of the world. We feel fortunate to be able to live and work here and to provide a better future for our daughter.
But that’s just legal immigration. The United States is sought after by immigrants trying to escape their diversity and home countries to make it here. Despite being the most sought-after country, the United States is also the hardest country to immigrate to. Many people will leave their families behind or bring their children here to be raised by strangers; some risk their livelihoods (doctors in India, will work as janitors here, etc.) and even their lives to reach American soil. The United Nations has labeled the crossing between the U.S. and Mexico “the deadliest land crossing in the world.” In 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol reported over 1,200 deaths along the U.S. border.
Why do people risk their lives and leave their families to come here? The reasons vary: to escape poverty, religious or political persecution, to provide a safe environment for their families, and to have more opportunities in their lives. To get a piece of that American priviledge that is quite rare in many parts of the world.
So how come the people who do have the right to live here, study here, work here, and raise their families here hate it so much when so many foreigners sacrifice everything to be allowed to live here?
MOST HATED COUNTRY BY THE YOUNG AMERICANS
Nobody hates the United States as much as Americans themselves—especially the new generations. According to a poll conducted by Morning Consult, a research and intelligence organization, only 16% of GenZ are proud to be American. The poll showed that with each generation, support for America declined by 20%.
So why do the young hate their country so much? The reasons differ in opinion, but two main factors can be highlighted:
Media influence: Like many others, the youth are heavily influenced by the social issues that dominate social media and news channels. This constant exposure often leads to a rush to take a stand, with blame being placed on others. Terms like 'white privilege,’ ‘Asian privilege, 'male privilege, ‘and 'heterosexual privilege' have become common, overshadowing the fact that all legal residents of the United States have American Privilege.
Lack of education and perspective. Unlike the immigrants, most Americans have not seen much of the world. They still need to learn about world history, geopolitical situations, or current affairs. In a detailed report published by the Council of Foreign Affairs, Americans know less about foreign policy and international news than ever. Less than 30 percent say they learned about foreign policy in school; on average, they answered just over half of the knowledge questions correctly. Even Ivy League students need help locating different regions on the world map, naming historical events outside the United States, and understanding critical issues in foreign policy. THAT is a huge problem, as being born here can make one susceptible to shouting from inside a ‘bubble’. The ‘problem’ is always correlated with personal experience.
I am not saying that the United States is perfect. There is no such thing as utopia. Many people face extreme poverty in the United States, and substance abuse is on the rise, as is the homelessness issue. However, essential liberties here are not offered in many parts of the world. Let’s dig in a bit deeper about what American privilege is.
EXAMPLES OF AMERICAN PRIVILEGE
“America is another name for opportunity.
Our history appears like a last effort of divine providence on behalf of the human race.”
- Poet Ralph. W. Emerson
EQUALITY.
Equality has become the most significant topic of debate. In my opinion, the United States is one of the least racist countries in the world, offering the most opportunities for everyone. I have traveled a lot, and no other country in the world hosts an abundance of races, ethnic backgrounds, and different cultures in one spot. Despite our diversity and background, we can succeed in the United States. Whether you’re black, white, Christian, Muslim, female, or a man, you can get an education, become the president, a doctor, or a professional athlete, raise your family, and keep your family safe from political persecution. While it might be more challenging on an individual level for some, collectively, we all have a chance to ‘make it’ here. In many parts of the world, these rights are unimaginable. There are places where women are prohibited from driving a car or getting an education. In other parts, parents are forced to sell their children into slavery to be able to feed the rest of the children. In some countries, people cannot find work and must leave their families behind to earn money in a foreign country. In other parts, ethical groups face prosecution on a systematic level. Anyone holding an American passport has an equal opportunity to succeed. You might have to start with minimum wage in McDonald's; while someone else has a trust fund, everyone can have the freedom to study, work, practice their religion, and raise their family here.
OPPORTUNITY
Opportunity is why I moved to the United States after leaving my whole family back in Estonia and seeing them maybe once a year. The United States is a country where a discretionary income lifestyle and living above survival are the norm—starting with education, which is highly valued in American society but is often taken for granted. Americans have access to free public education and the option to attend college. We help an NGO in Uganda that offers tennis and education to underprivileged children. I spent time with children, and their main dream was to be able to go to school and learn. It costs about 20$ annually for one child to receive an education. However, most families cannot afford it. Instead, these children sort through trash to help feed their siblings and community members and walk miles to get clean drinking water to avoid getting deadly diseases. You see where I’m going with this, right?
Furthermore, according to a report by U.S. News and World Report, the United States is the second best country for entrepreneurship, first for business and innovation, and scored fourth in overall quality of life. With a GDP of over $21 trillion, the United States is socially diverse and economically flourishing. How come even illegal immigrants who don’t speak the language and don’t have a work permit manage to put their kids through school, build businesses, and flourish when locals with all the rights can’t? Why are Asians the highest-grossing group in the United States despite not having generations of wealth and history here? It’s because they recognize what working hard, community help, and opportunities can mean here.
I love watching Shark Tank, and I recently noticed that most entrepreneurs are immigrants or first-generation Americans whose parents sacrificed everything to get here. They did it because of the opportunities that don’t exist in most parts of the world.
FREEDOM
Freedom is such a generalization, yet it means everything, even on a micro level. If you have a legal right to be in the United States, you enjoy all kinds of freedoms. You are free to practice your religion; you are free to study, work, earn money, practice your beliefs, identify as you, have sex, and love whomever you choose, as long as it is consensual. You can invest your money, build a business, and have your political views. You can express your discontent with the political powers, protest, and fight for your beliefs. You can travel, leave the United States, and come back. All of these rights are inconsiderable in many parts of the world. Let me give you some examples: North Koreans can not leave and are forced to live under the conditions of the authoritarian regime. I am in anti-trafficking, and the stories of women and children who try to escape to China but end up in sex trafficking are heartbreaking.
Under the Sharia Law in many Arab regimes, women have little freedom and belong to their husbands. People in the LGBTQ community would be stoned to death for being different there. Even in Russia, it is illegal to be gay, and you can end up in jail for practicing that freedom. But not in the United States. Here, people are free to live according to their beliefs.
WHY DOES THIS MATTER FOR YOUR MENTAL HEALTH
I am not writing this article to show how great America is. While it is a place where people can thrive and enjoy the above-mentioned freedoms, there are things that I struggle with while living here.
I am writing this article to help you fully realize the potential of your teen and young adult years.
While we are young, time is our main asset.
This is when you can learn, grow, build a solid work ethic, and apply discipline for a successful future. Don’t waste your precious years hating on the country that gives you these opportunities and freedoms. Please don’t take them for granted. Put that passion and energy into realizing your future goals and how to go after them because here…you can. And who knows, maybe one day you will get to put those skills to good use and aid in humanitarian efforts in other parts of the world that are much less fortunate than someone with an American passport. Because, let's face it, out of the 84% of GenZ who hate the United States, 99% will never move and go live somewhere else. Why? Because it is more comfortable to shout about the problems here than to experience hardships and lack of opportunities elsewhere.
I believe that perspective can be fuel for success and happiness. It is a shame that students who are fortunate enough to study in universities, thanks to their achievements, government help, or their parents' resources, feel angry, sad, and depressed for one reason or another. Many of the young are protesting on the streets against their country, and a considerable number don’t appreciate what being an American really means for the rest of the world. We all have our issues, our daily struggles, and our individual worries, but how many of us here have to suffer under political violence, lack of opportunities to study/work, lack of food or clean drinking water, the terror of being sold as a slave, or kidnapped into mining or forced into being a child soldier, or imprisoned in a territory with inhumane laws, with no freedom to leave.
With perspective, you can ease your mind, nourish your mental health, and breathe with gratitude. Go study, learn, absorb knowledge. Travel inside the United States and see the world, familiarizing yourself with different cultures. Work and surround yourself with people you admire and who can help you grow. America is not perfect, but it is one of the world’s best. And you have its passport.
