Some people say that the American Dream is the pursuit of material prosperity; while others believe it’s living a simple, fulfilling life. It’s not merely the ability to acquire high wages or fancy sport cars, though in fact, the idea to start anew in a land full of opportunities and to attain a fuller life. The American Dream is alive, however it’s much easier for some to attain it than others; geography and socioeconomic status are the determining factors in this case.
Where the American Dream “lives” and where it does not differs throughout the United States. Since where we live matters, upward mobility can be an issue for parents and their children. According to Derek Thompson’s graphs reflecting absolute upward mobility, your income compared to your parent 's income, and relative mobility, one’s chances of moving up or down the income ladder relative to their peers, reveals that the most upwardly mobile region is the Midwest followed by the West Coast and the Northeast. One of most upwardly mobile cities in those regions was Salt Lake City, UT. The likelihood of moving from the poorest quintile to the richest was 10.8% in Salt Lake City compared to Charlotte, NC which only had 4%. The reason for this is because Utah fights the “war on homelessness” by focusing on “Housing First.” That means getting people into permanent shelter before trying to diagnose and address the problems that contributed to their homelessness, such as, mental illness and substance abuse.