The American Dream isn’t dead, but each one of us needs to help it to thrive

Editor's note: The pursuing op-ed is adapted from writer Doug DeVos's caller book, "Believe! A Timeless Endorsement of American Principles" (50th Anniversary Edition), (Post Hill Press, Nov. 25, 2025).

Is America connected the verge of an unthinkable comeback? Or is America successful decline? 

You’ve, nary doubt, heard (or adjacent asked) these questions arsenic our state prepares for its 250th day adjacent twelvemonth — July 4, 2026, the day of the Declaration of Independence. It feels similar everyone is asking these questions.  

For the archetypal clip successful recorded history, less than fractional of Americans deliberation our champion days are up of us. More radical deliberation that our champion days are successful the rear-view mirror. Four retired of 5 Americans present judge their children’s lives volition beryllium worse than theirs. That fig has doubled successful conscionable 20 years. And erstwhile it comes to the agelong run, much Americans interest that idiosyncratic calved successful the aboriginal volition beryllium worse disconnected than idiosyncratic calved successful the past. 

But is it true? Is America truly successful decline? I’ve asked myself this question, too. And my reply is simply a resounding: No!

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The Statue of Liberty stands successful the foreground arsenic Lower Manhattan is viewed astatine dusk, Sept. 8, 2016, successful New York City. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

I don’t deliberation we’re declining. I deliberation we’re drifting. There’s a large difference. We don’t consciousness anchored to the halfway ideas that created the American experimentation and the American Dream. We’re getting taken by the existent and blown by the wind. But portion that’s not the aforesaid happening arsenic decline, it’s a unsafe thing, nonetheless. America was ne'er meant to drift. America is expected to courageously determination forward, lifting up our radical and starring our world. 

Let maine beryllium clear: America remains the strongest state connected world by truthful galore measures. But we’re not moving to wherever we request to spell and what we request to be. The bully quality is that we tin get the state backmost connected track. We conscionable request to retrieve who we are and what we basal for — and past we request to physique a aboriginal connected the time-tested principles that made america large successful the archetypal place.  

What are those principles? Belief successful people. Free enterprise. The family. Accountability and quality dignity. Every procreation of Americans has applied these principles to flooded challenges and determination past division. And that’s what we request to bash today.

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We can’t hold for idiosyncratic other to prevention America. Not politicians, arsenic important arsenic they are. Not concern oregon assemblage leaders, either. The existent leaders successful this state are you and maine and each our chap citizens. And portion that whitethorn look daunting, it’s empowering, too. The aboriginal depends connected you. 

That aboriginal volition beryllium a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you judge that time is going to beryllium worse, you’ll enactment accordingly. You’ll strive little and effort less. You’ll effort to get much than you springiness because, aft all, things are bad, truthful who cares? 

But if you judge that time volition beryllium better, you’ll enactment precise differently. Instead of sitting back, you’ll measurement up. Instead of accepting the problems astir us, you’ll inquire however you tin lick them. You’ll ne'er settee for the presumption quo — due to the fact that you cognize you tin illustration a way forward.

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The stakes couldn’t beryllium higher. And if you don’t act, marque nary mistake: America’s drift whitethorn go a decline. But if you bash enactment — if you use the time-tested principles that specify the champion of our past — past America volition find its absorption again.  

What are those principles? Belief successful people. Free enterprise. The family. Accountability and quality dignity. Every procreation of Americans has applied these principles to flooded challenges and determination past division. And that’s what we request to bash today.

We person everything we request to determination guardant due to the fact that we person you. Our radical are inactive the astir originative and entrepreneurial connected earth. Our system is inactive the envy of the world. Hundreds of millions of radical privation to unrecorded successful the onshore of the escaped and the location of the brave. And our country’s communicative is 1 of unthinkable progress, driven by mundane radical taking mundane action.

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This is however we’ve tackled each situation we’ve faced. We’ve flooded evils similar slavery, enacted civilian rights and women’s rights, and fixed much and much radical a existent accidental to unrecorded their champion lives. We’ve worked to marque our national a spot much cleanable with each generation. We’re not determination yet, and we inactive person a batch of enactment to bash together. Yet successful our hearts, we each cognize it tin beryllium done, and you’re indispensable to making it happen. 

You person a accidental to alteration your future, your assemblage and our federation — to springiness a caller lease connected beingness to the American Dream. You person a accidental to find bonzer occurrence and past scope retired to assistance others succeed, too. And supra each else, you person a accidental to beryllium — to yourself and to others — that America’s days of drifting are over. If you basal by the principles that built and sustained this country, America’s aboriginal is agleam indeed.