The Myth of the American Dream – Reflections on Affluence, Autonomy, Safety, and Power

D. L. Mayfield is a writer and activist who has spent over a decade working with refugee communities in the United States. Her work has been published in McSweeney's, The Washington Post, Christianity Today, Christian Century, Sojourners, Vox, and the Englewood Review of Books. She is also the author of Assimilate or Go Home: Notes from a Failed Missionary on Rediscovering Faith. She lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband and two children.

Introduction: The Myth of the American Dream



Part One: Affluence


1. The Walls of Rome

2. Who Is My Neighbor?

3. Getting Curious

4. Low, Low Prices

5. How Not to Be a Millionaire

6. Lament for the Land

7. True Generosity



Part Two: Autonomy


8. Liberty

9. The Names We Give

10. Fresh Paint

11. What Is Education For?

12. Paying Attention to My Neighbors

13. The Hospitality of Exiles



Part Three: Safety


14. The Odds

15. Mary, or We Can Never Be Safe

16. The Ship of the Doomed

17. Good Seeds

18. Waking Up Sad

19. The Happiest Place on Earth



Part Four: Power


20. Empire

21. Billboards

22. The Pioneer Mind

23. Signposts

24. Monuments and Memorials

25. Learning from Exiles



Epilogue: How to Live in Empire

Acknowledgments

Notes