Here's How Women Are Being Denied The American Dream

What is the "American Dream?"

That's a difficult question to answer these days.

In the past, it was the notion that every person could create a happy, safe and prosperous life for him or herself if they worked hard enough. As James Truslow Adams, who coined the term "the American Dream," wrote in 1931,

The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.

Sounds nice.

But having a good work ethic or being skilled at something just doesn't seem to cut it anymore. Indeed, the American Dream feels dead for many people across this country, and there's a lot of evidence to support the argument that it's no longer achievable.

The Red Pin, a real estate website, analyzed the cost of living and median income levels in 74 US cities, and found "significant obstacles to obtaining the American Dream across the country."

The analysis showed it's a lot harder to reach the American Dream if you're a woman. This isn't that surprising when you consider the gender pay gap and the fact we live in a society that gave women the right to vote less than a century ago.

Simply put, American women have always faced significant obstacles, and their male counterparts have definitely had it a lot easier.

Still, it's pretty shocking to view what it takes to obtain the American Dream, and pretty clear which groups are struggling the most in this regard.

If you want to live the American Dream today and live with a family of four, you need to be able to dish out around $3,547 per month for various expenses.

Females across the country are not making enough money to achieve the American dream, regardless of age or race.

You might as well kiss the American Dream goodbye if you don't have a college degree, especially if you're female.

If you live in places like New York, Miami and Los Angeles, the American Dream is simply not possible because of the high cost of living.

Here's where you should live if you want a realistic shot at achieving the American Dream.

If you're living in New York City, you need to make almost $90,000 in addition to your actual income to afford the American Dream.

The American Dream appears to be most possible in the Southwest and Midwest in terms of the difference between yearly income and expenses.

The moral of the story here: If you want to obtain the American Dream, don't live in an expensive city, get a college degree and don't be born a woman. Easy enough, right?

All of this points to the fact the US needs to make a more concerted effort to offer equal opportunities to all people, regardless of gender or race.

Moreover, it's long past time to end the gender pay gap and offer equal pay for equal work.

The American Dream isn't a dream at all when half of the country is held back.