Features » The Fading Middle Class Dream

Working and playing by the rules provides no guarantee of achieving even a modicum of economic security today. The same misguided public policies that contributed so directly to causing the recession have also systematically undermined the American middle class and the American dream. The recession has made these problems worse.

For many low- and middle-income earners, the dream shared by generations of Americans that their children would have a brighter future has been shattered. The ability to afford college without a mountain of debt, find a job that pays, buy a home, care for your family, and make sure your kids -- and your neighbors' -- have a good school to attend have all gotten harder over the past decade. Basic necessities cost more than for earlier generations, and the risks – of getting sick, losing a job, getting old – have been shifted more onto individuals and families.

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