“Pass” and better answers should
feature developed, exemplified
knowledge and
understanding of:
1. The achievement of the American
Dream by ethnic minorities.
2. The non-achievement of the
American Dream by ethnic
minorities.
And
3. Balanced comment on/analysis of
the extent to which ethnic minorities
achieve the
American Dream.
COMPLETE FOR FRIDAY 26TH
The American Dream as having the freedom that
allows all citizens to achieve their goals in life
through hard work; for many it is the opportunity
to have financial security, a home, successful
career and the ability to send their children to
the best schools possible
• Across all areas there are increasing examples
of successful ethnic minorities who are breaking
barriers and achieving the ‘American dream.’
• Affirmative Action policies have been part of American politics
for over 50 years.
• In 1961 President John F Kennedy signed Executive Order
10925 ordering that federally funded projects ‘take affirmative
action to ensure that applicant are employed and employees are
treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed,
color or national origin.’
• Affirmative Action policies have been used in employment laws,
education laws and many other areas of life in America and led
to improvements for ethnic groups.
• Ethnic minority groups are becoming more influential during
elections.
• The growth in the hispanic population and increased African
American turnout figures show that these groups are more likely
to be influential in deciding leaders of the future.
• Half of Asians have a college degree, compared with 30% for
all Americans, and their median annual household income is
$66,000, versus $49,000 for Americans as a whole.
• Asians are also more likely to be married, and their children
are more likely to be raised in a two-parent home.
• A Pew study found Asians are three times as likely as
immigrants from other parts of the world to get U.S. permanent
residency on the basis of employment rather than family ties.
• Despite evidence in the 1990s of a growing African – American
middle-class, ethnic groups are still trailing behind whites in a
variety of different social and economic indicators.
• Social – Housing, Crime and Justice, Education
• Economic – Unemployment, Poverty
Homelessness – Skid Row?
African Americans
are more likely to be
in prison than white
males. A young
african american
has a 1 in 3 chance
of spending some
time in prison.
Hispanics and African-Americans less likely to graduate from college.
To what extent do ethnic minorities
influence the outcome of elections
in the USA?
1. Ethnic Minority participation in elections.
2. The importance of the ethnic minority vote to the
outcome.
3. The importance of ethnic minority issues to the
outcome.
COMPLETE FOR MONDAY 29TH APRIL
1 - Participation
• Growing participation amongst Blacks, and while Hispanic
participation remains low there is a growing population of
Hispanics which makes their vote larger.
• Use your handout sheets to add evidence and analysis to this!
2 - Participation of ethnic minorities in
Swing States
• Swing states with a large ethnic minority
population have become more important
in recent elections.
• 22.5% of the Florida population are
Hispanic, and as it is a swing state this
group have become increasingly
important in influencing the final election
result. Whilst 71% of Hispanics voted
Democrat in 2012, there is a large group
of Cuban exiles in Florida who are more
likely to vote Republican.
2 - Participation - Gerrymandering
• Gerrymandering can reduce the influence
of ethnic minority groups.
• For example Republican politicians have
influenced the district boundaries in Illinois
to create the 4th District where 70% of
the population are hispanic.
• 90% of House of Representative seats
are won by the ‘incumbent’ suggests that
the vote in general is not effective.
3 - Ethnic Minority Issues
• Immigration and Healthcare have become
key political issues within America in recent
years.
• The Hispanic vote for the Democrats
increased in 2008 and again in 2012,
possibly because the Republican
Immigration policy is largely unpopular
amongst Hispanics.
3 – Other issues?
• White Americans still remain the largest
voting group in America and so are the
largest influence on the result.
• The economy and unemployment have
been important issues for all groups in
America in recent elections and opinion
polls suggest that the Democrats gained
support amongst those in low-income
groups.