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(Describer) Bridges stretch across the Williamette river and the seal of the City of Portland appears over a glowing marquee sign. As light rail trains and cars move through the city, studio cameras show a panel of kids sitting before a news anchor.

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(Describer) COVID-19 signs encourage mask wearing and physical distancing, and a sign at a rally reads: 'We are stronger than hate.' A title appears in a dialogue bubble: 'Kids Speak Out. Brought to you by Oregon Harbor of Hope.' In the news studio:

It's not gonna be as easy for somebody to achieve their dream as it may be for you because they don't have as many opportunities or as much access to those opportunities.

(Interpreter) I think that people worry about money more than worrying about people themselves. There's like certain people from different parts are treated differently the way I am, even though they look the same way I do.

(host) In the history of our United States, people all over the world have come to our land to pursue the American Dream with the hope that through hard work and perseverance, anyone, regardless of where they were born or what class they were born into, can rise from rags to riches, becoming financially successful and socially upwardly mobile. Welcome to "Kids Speak Out: Oregon." I'm Barbara Harrison. The American Dream is rooted in the United States Declaration of Independence. That document, created by our forefathers, said two key things that are largely responsible for what the classic American Dream is-- "All men," and women, "are created equal," and each of us has the right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Let's meet the young people who are with us today to share their thoughts about the American Dream. Let's start with you, Navid. My name is Navid. I'm 18 years old, I'm not currently in school, and some of my hobbies are Muay Thai and boxing. Mia? My name is Mia. I am 16 years old and I really like to do art.

(Barbara) Great. June? My name is June. I am 12 years old and I like doing dance.

(Barbara) All right, Mila. My name is Mila. I'm 14 years old and I really like to pursue like gymnastics and art. My name is Calveonte, I go by Tey, and I like to play football and basketball. -(Barbara) Quinlin? -I'm Quinlin. I'm currently a junior in high school and I'm super involved in the arts.

(Barbara) And Quintin.

(Describer) He signs.

[through interpreter] Hi there, my name is Quintin

and I love taking care of my siblings. Well, that's fantastic. And we're so glad you're here, all of you. And we're talking about something that's really a happy thought, the American Dream, whether you feel like it's out there for you or not. We believe in this country that we all have the right to expect great things of our lives, especially in the future. So who shall we start with? June, why don't you tell us how do you see your future? What is your American Dream?

(June) I really want to... pursue like dance and aerial arts, so like trapeze and stuff. Tey, what about you? What do you wanna do in the future?

(Tey) I wanna play football more. -You're playing football now? -Yeah. I'm going to college for football and I wanna play football even past then and probably try to own like a business or something. What about you, Mia?

(Mia) I would love to pursue being a Spanish translator or doing something in the art field, maybe owning an art studio of some sort. That'd be really cool.

(Barbara) And that's your dream? -I would say so, yes. -All right. I think I have a lot of dreams. I'm quite indecisive, but. Well, we'll try to get into some of the other ones too, but that sounds like a great ambition. And Quinlin.

(Quinlin) I would also like to do something in the art field and have the opportunities to be able to choose and have that evolve as I grow older. And Mila?

(Mila) I've always wanted to go into the medical field or pursue something of mathematics.

(Barbara) And is that something that you're thinking of pursuing in college? Yep.

(Barbara) And how about you, Quintin? What are you thinking of that you'd like to do? I'd like to become a doctor, an anesthesiologist, help patients go to sleep for surgery. Wonderful. Did you change your dream at all lately? Have you found that life is a lot harder than you thought maybe when you were six years old and just beginning to dream about your future? Anybody change their mind?

(Navid) Yeah, I would definitely say so. Once you get into the real world, there's a lot of factors that aren't really, or that you kind of like learn about that you weren't really accustomed to, especially when you were in school. Just 'cause when you're in school you kind of have the responsibilities of a student and that's it. You don't have to worry about earning money or doing anything like that. Although money is nice 'cause you can buy like whatever. Yeah, there is a lot of factors that come into play.

(Mia) Yeah, going off of what you said, I would totally agree with that. I think when you're younger you're taught that anyone can do anything, and I think that's totally correct. But we have to keep in mind that you can do anything you want to, but people have setbacks that other people don't. If you're a minority, if you're a woman, you are going to start a step back than somebody who is white or male. And we have to keep that in mind when saying how hard you have to work. You have to be conscientious of that. Maybe your end goal is easier achievable than somebody else's end goal. That's a good point to make. June?

(June) Yeah, I think it does, it is like a big difference from when you're younger. 'Cause when you're younger you have all of these ideas and stuff and you're just kind of like flourishing in creativity. But when you're older it's kind of like you've tried some things out and some things don't work as well as you thought they might. Let's move over here to Quintin. Quintin, what are you thinking? Has your idea of the American Dream, your American Dream, changed at all since you were a little kid? Yeah. Yeah. When I was younger, I had all kinds of ideas, things I wanted to do, but I noticed as I would say around 13, 14 years old I noticed that things were a little harder. There's access issues. I felt limited, but I have learned that I could still break that barrier.

(Barbara) Well, that's great to hear. And we wanna hear where you wanna get to when you break that barrier. I think you're already breaking it. You're here with us today and that's wonderful. Quinlin?

(Quinlin) I think there's certain reality checks that we do as we get older. Just self-checking in and what seems to be the most reasonable course of action to also provide us with success. I think success is often defined by your ability to be financially and emotionally and physically stable in a career path. And the certain percentages that allow you to feel secure in your career paths kind of differ where you feel that you may pursue life going on. And you, Tey, what are you thinking now that you weren't thinking when you were, maybe we should start with when you were five, six years old? What was your dream at that point? You weren't thinking of playing football at that point, were you?

(Tey) No, I was more thinking of playing basketball and then I realized that certain things like happened that made it so I couldn't do that. And it's like where certain places of where I came from. So it kind of made it harder for me to achieve that dream. You mean they weren't playing basketball in the area you were living in? It wasn't-- it was more like the people around me were a lot better than what I thought, and then I realized how hard it was to make it because you have to be a certain level to actually do that.

(Barbara) Did it have to do with height? -A little bit. -[Barbara laughs] Well, you look like you're pretty tall from where you're sitting right now, but football became your sport. -Yeah. -And Mila, how about you? Did you change your mind over the years?

(Mila) Yeah, when I was little, not little but for a while I thought I wanted to be a psychiatrist. But I think I learned that they didn't get much of a annual income and I think income is very important in life, so I kinda shut down on that and went more into like surgical medical field and more. So you're thinking of going to medical school and then studying surgery?

(Mila) Maybe surgery, yeah. Surgeon or that kind of medical field. Well, that's a great American Dream. Let's talk about the American Dream. What do you think most people want in this country? More than anything?

(Mila) A lavish lifestyle, a big home, family, kids. -Yeah. -That's like the basic of it. And I think that's probably where we started out where we think that the American Dream means that we can earn as much money as we want and look to the sky for the things that we can own. Do you feel like that, Navid? Is money the ultimate goal, so that you can buy what you want?

(Navid) It's definitely part of it. Money is freedom. When you have more money, you have less worries about if you can have water in your house or your safety. But I don't think it should be the end goal, 'cause I believe there was some studies that show after a certain threshold of income, you actually, like your happiness kind of caps out. I believe that was $75,000 a year. Because you just have all of your access to your basic needs. And so anything after that is just exponential. So you say, "Oh, I wanna make a hundred thousand now. Oh, I have a hundred thousand." You know, you get used to that lifestyle, now you wanna make more and more and more and more. It's a never-ending chase. And so I don't think it should be the end goal, but I think it should definitely be part of it. Anybody else agree that money is out there? That's part of it? Football! You wanna make a whole lot of money playing football, or is that not the dream? Is the dream just being out there on the field?

(Tey) I think I don't really care much about the money for like playing; I just wanted to play 'cause it's something I do to have fun. And I think the American Dream is more like you should do something that brings you joy instead of doing something that's just revolved around money. Well, that's a good idea. I think that a lot of us hope that whatever we choose to do makes us happy when we're doing it. June, have you changed your mind about what you wanted to be?

(June) Well, when I was younger I wanted to be a vet. I mean, a lot of people did but I just loved animals, and I still love animals, but I just feel like I wouldn't really. That just doesn't seem like something I'd wanna do. And I feel like money is kind of a big part of it. I mean, I wasn't considering that when I was little, but I would be now if I was getting a job, which I'm not. But if I was. What year are you in school? I'm in sixth grade. In the sixth grade. So you have a little while to think about what you wanna be when you grow up. But money does kind of dangle out there, those dollars attractive to many of us because we see that they will buy things for us. Quinlin, how do you feel about that?

(Quinlin) I think it provides opportunities and the ability to go out into the world and feel like you have a choice between many opportunities and that feeling secure before making decisions. And that money, that ensures you and the money that ensures those opportunities can help give you that security. Quintin, are you looking for security through money?

[through interpreter] I feel like people are always thinking about money

and I don't necessarily agree with that. I do think that money is important and it is beneficial. But I think that people worry about money more than worrying about people themselves and collaborating with others. So I wish that people would focus more on helping each other and supporting each other rather than worrying about being more wealthy. So what I feel like is important is connecting with others. How many of you read some of those stories on social media about people who are famous, the Kardashians, some of the others who are stars of social media? Why do you read it? Why do you read that? Do you wanna emulate those lives? Would you like to be famous, popular?

(Quinlin) I think it's cathartic in a way. If you, I think most people in America, don't live that life or even a sliver of life close to what we watch. And so when we watch reality TV shows and we watch the Kardashians, it becomes this great debate. Whether it's, do you support them? Do you not? Is it wrong to like them or not? And I think it's so often not discussed how we watch them to get a sliver of their life because they represent a common theme of the American Dream, which is to be money, to be wealthy. And then to portray money equaling happiness on TV, that makes us feel good in a way and it helps us show a sliver of that which we might not be able to obtain. Do any of you think that social media encourages us to build a dream in our heads of being popular, -of being well known? -(June) Definitely.

(Mia) I think that for sure that is a factor, but a lot of it I think we realize is fake and cherry-picked to make it look like people have different lives than they actually do. And feeding off of what somebody said, I think the pursuit of the American Dream as money is part of it, but I think it's happiness. And obviously money can feed into your happiness. But I think that that is ultimately the goal is to be satisfied with your life and your lifestyle. And that's why when we see people online who are living that dream, it might not make us happy and it might not make the people who are living that way happy. Many stars aren't happy with their life, they are depressed. And that's because the American Dream isn't really money. I think money's a factor of the ultimate dream, which is happiness. I think we'd all agree with that, right? We wanna be happy. Some people think they can buy happiness. We're gonna take a break and come back with more of what you have to tell us. We'll be right back. Stay with us.

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Welcome back. In our final episode of "Kids Speak Out: Oregon," we're talking about the American Dream and how to reach for it, how to find it. We have Quintin with us right now who wants to tell us who he is, who's speaking with him. You want to introduce your interpreter?

(interpreter) Quintin is saying, Sure, I'm deaf-blind. I go by Quintin. That's my name sign and I have an interpreter here, and the reason is because he helps facilitate communication between you, Barbara, and myself, Quintin. And that way your audience may understand why we have an interpreter here because he helps facilitate communication. So I just wanted to share that. Well, while I've got your attention, why don't you tell me what your American Dream is? My American Dream is to help my community collaborate and have equal access to things. I want to show people that those who are disabled can be leaders. It doesn't matter what is going on with you, you can become a leader. So I want to break the barrier. Again, I want to show that anyone can do anything, whatever they aspire to. But sometimes the American Dream can actually be a barrier.

(Barbara) Yes, I can imagine. Did you want to say something else about that?

[Quintin's interpreter] Sure.

When it comes to barriers, I was saying that you were talking about money and finding happiness, but I feel like there's politics involved or local government and legislature who are trying to vie for control over the community and sometimes money is not something that's given out fair. People use it for drugs, for instance. And so I just feel like it's too much for our community.

(Barbara) You know, that brings up a point that some people have raised that your economic standing that where the family that you grow up in might reflect the person that you want to become or that you think you can become. Do you feel like that's an obstacle if you grow up in a family that doesn't have a lot? Does that determine what your dream might be?

(Navid) I can't really speak for not as wealthy people. I grew up in a fairly well-off place, but what I can speak on is mindset. And what I've learned from just training and doing sparring and stuff like that with boxing or Muay Thai is that all of it's mental. It's a lot of the times you're not actually scared of getting hurt by a punch, you're just scared of getting punched, if that makes any sense. It's not actually that like the punch hurts you, it's just like, "Oh, I don't want to get punched." I think the same thing can be applied to life and it comes down to a lot of limiting beliefs and mental barriers. And that's why I really respect, well, I'm sorry, what was your name? Quintin? -Quintin. -Yeah. I really respect the goal that you have, and I think that's a really admirable thing.

(Quintin's interpreter) Thank you! I would definitely agree with what you said. I do think that I touched on this a little earlier, but where you grew up in, what people told you you could or couldn't do, will definitely limit at first how you feel, the success you feel you can achieve. And I think it's important for everyone to realize that we all come from different backgrounds, and it's not gonna be as easy for somebody to achieve their dream as it may be for you because they don't have as many opportunities or as much access to those opportunities. And I think it's important to acknowledge that and not treat people as if they're not working hard enough when they come from a totally different background than you. You have no idea what's going on in their lives and they may have some crazy obstacles they have to get over to get to where you have come, and you have to acknowledge that.

(Barbara) I think you're absolutely right. One of the good things that's happened over the last 25 years, maybe 50 years, is that women can now aspire to some of the things, except playing football maybe. Although they have some kickers, right?

(Tey) There's like--

(Barbara) Any girls on your football team?

(Tey) Yeah, there were a couple on my team.

(Quinlin) Kind of touching back on the feminist and like moving forward in jobs that may be predominantly preoccupied by men in the past. At my school, I'm a part of the Women's Coalition Leadership, and through that we've seen a lot of work and research of jobs that have now been taken over by women over the decades, and how even though there may be spots secured within those jobs where women now have opportunities to fulfill those roles. There's still things such as pay issues and as well as opportunities. Like, if a woman is still in a job and they want to have a child, they may restrain on having that child or planning to start a family because they're still not paid maternity leave and so they have to reserve their sick days for an entire year in order just to feel secure in taking that time to build and start their family. My aunt, she pursued, and she was like the first person in the entire family to graduate college, and she was in the honors program and she graduated with honors. So I think it really depends on the person. I mean, she came from a family of women that got married at 15 and would have kids, and would just depend on their family. And she pushed through that and instead went to college and is now happy, you know? Quinlin?

(Quinlin) I mean, tagging along to that. I think for women, the American Dream can look like a lot of different things. It could be to have a family and to be a mother and that be the predominant job, which is an amazing thing. But it also can be to be the CEO of a company or just own whatever is bringing them joy in that part of their life, and how just owning that purely and calling that for themselves can be a dream. Do you believe that in our country that if you have a dream anybody can reach that height, that peak?

(Quinlin) I think so. It's again, as we've said, it's per person and per that drive that that individual possesses to go out and obtain that job and get that if that's what someone truly wanted. So I think it's the perseverance and the motivation.

(Barbara) How about you, Quintin? Do you think that anybody can achieve whatever they want, whatever they dream of in this country?

(Describer) He signs.

[through interpreter] We need to change something,

otherwise these problems are gonna be ongoing. Poverty, drugs, that kind of thing is gonna continue and there won't be any change. So I do believe that if we as people in America come together and yell for support, then we will succeed with that American Dream. Well, let's talk about change quickly. What do we need to change in this country so that everybody has equal opportunity to reach their dream? -(Mia) A lot. [chuckles] -(June) Everything! Well, let's hear some of it. I want to hear.

(Mia) There's so much systematic oppression targeted to a lot of people, the majority of people, because they look different or they choose to present differently or they're born differently. And I think that to say, "Anybody can achieve anything they want," ignores the fact that there are systematic problems in America that the people in power have put in place to stay in power and that we as people need to address and not let people who have more power than us quiet us down. And I think that, yeah, it's not as achievable for someone as it is for-- It's not as achievable for someone to reach the American Dream as it may be for somebody else. And I think that that starts with a systematic change in America. Do you think that all of us need to participate more in our government and making decisions and choosing leaders so that we can see that everybody has the same opportunity?

(Navid) I just wanted to add to what you said. You talked about how there's a lot of systematic oppression and things like that that, you know, limits certain people from getting like the careers they want. However, personally I think trying to add that into your thought process, I think that's a self-limiting belief. Obviously you can see that, but I think what that spirals to is a lot of people thinking, "Oh, well I can't do this thing because this is here." You know?

(Mia) I agree, and I think that you can do whatever you want, it's possible, but it will be significantly harder for a woman of color to do something that a white man would also like to do if the people in power have a systematic or have a mindset built on oppression. And so, although it's not impossible, I do think we have to acknowledge that it is significantly harder for those people -to reach those end goals. -(Navid) Mm-hmm. Anybody want to weigh in on that? It's a good point to make.

(Quinlin) Yeah, I mean I think a lot of things that-- it's coming up in social media and in TV shows and in conversations with youth that something called the Oppression Wars and how one individual that suffers from-- a minority-- and another person that is a part of a different minority kind of think that it must be a conflicting conversation on who has it worse or who has it better. Whereas it's a coexisting experience that you do suffer from some parts of society not understanding you, whereas it just needs to be an equal conversation where you understand.

(Mila) Yeah. And some parts of the system just are unfair. Like a good comparison are in sports. Women's sports gets paid a lot less and watched a lot less compared to men's sports. So some things are just almost unachievable.

(Barbara) Yeah. And Tey, what do you think about that? Where you grow up, who you grew up with, color of your skin. Do you think that makes a difference these days or has that changed as far as you're concerned?

(Tey) I think it may make a difference compared to like, there are some people who go to my school who always talk to me about certain things that I went through that they haven't went through. And I think where you come from and then how you are oppressed in certain different ways, like certain people from different parts are treated differently than the way I am, even though they look the same way I do.

(Barbara) Yeah. So I think everybody's treated differently depending on where you're from and where you came up from. Even though we should all kind of be like in the same boat. We're supposed to, in this country, we're supposed to be all equal, right? Everybody agree with that? Quintin, we're so glad that you joined us today and I am so glad you brought along your interpreter and he's telling you what I'm saying. And you want to have one last word?

[Quintin, through interpreter] Yeah, I did want to add to

regarding oppression real briefly. I noticed that, you know, I volunteer for Youth Line, an organization called Youth Line, and statistics show that many teens feel oppression, especially with mental health issues. So that kind of conflicts with the American Dream. Well, we've gotta work on the American Dream. We've gotta make it work for everybody, all Americans. Thank you all of you. This has been a great talk we've had, but a good panel we've had to talk about the American Dream. You've all had something to offer. Thanks a lot. Thank you, Quintin. Our panel has given us some very important insights about the American Dream. With that, we now complete our ten-week series of "Kids Speak Out: Oregon." We thank you for joining us and we hope that you learned a lot. These kids are the future of this country and we need to listen to them.

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-Thank you. -Thank you. Accessibility provided by the U.S. Department of Education.

(Describer) Text appears: 'This has been a Koin-6 special presentation of Kids Speak Out: Oregon. Brought to you by W. Glen Boyd Charitable Foundation, Oregon Harbor of Hope, and Barbara Harrison Media.'

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(Describer) This week's panel: Quintin, Mia, Quinlin, June, Mila, Navid, and Calveonte. Special thanks to Strategic Print and Promotions LLC, Beyond Well Media, and Hopscotch Foundation. Nexstar Media Group 2023.' Accessibility provided by the US Department of Education.

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