Amber and David Lapp write:

We’ve spent the past decade living in a working-class town in southwestern Ohio, initially on a short-term research project and then settling in as citizens, neighbors, and friends—so that is the vantage from which we understand America.

For this memo we talked with 14 of our neighbors about the American Dream, their experiences in the economy, and what they think policymakers can do.

Here are six themes we heard:

“I don’t think the American Dream really exists anymore.”

The people we spoke with described the American Dream as increasingly out of reach. “The American Dream means everyone has a chance at success, but I don’t feel that is true for the low-income or anyone who has a criminal record,” said a woman who worked as a supervisor at a homeless shelter….

“In the middle is where you get screwed.”

For families like Corrie’s, part of the problem is that their income is too high to qualify for government assistance but not high enough to pay their bills. A common sentiment we heard was, as Corrie put it, “You have to be rock-bottom poor for you to even get any help.”…

“We want to thrive, not just survive.”

When Wyatt was working at a hotel in Cincinnati, he observed that his Gen Z coworkers were different. While some labeled them as lazy, Wyatt says he likes that they were idealistic and had life priorities other than working and making money. It’s not that young people are afraid of hard work, he says, but they have different expectations about what an employer can rightfully demand from them….

“Family trumps work.”

The priority for many working-class young adults is time with family. Shayla, who works seasonally at an amusement park, says that her children are “my American Dream.” Growing up, her parents both worked opposite shifts at a restaurant, one early in the morning, one late into the night. She doesn’t want that for her kids….

“Just talk to me like I’m human.”

When asked what kinds of opportunities they would like the economy to provide, many people talked about workplace culture. Respondents mentioned a desire for “a cohesive team environment,” being treated with “respect and dignity” whether or not they had a college degree, and forming relationships with managers who were more like “mentors” than adversaries….

“I don’t trust the government anyway.”

If working-class Americans feel dismissed in the workplace, the problem is even more acute in politics. In our interviews, there was disillusionment with, but no rage against, politicians. People didn’t mention them unless we asked. Political leaders are too irrelevant for rage—seen as clownish, “pandering,” and “inept” on all sides, the butt of a joke, not a serious hope.

You can read their full report here.