National

Axios Finish Line

We often hear the American Dream is dead. But whatever you think of immigration, every year people come here from around the world in pursuit of that dream.

Why it matters: People across borders and oceans still view the U.S. as the place to come to build a better life for their children.

And 70% of U.S. adults — across race, gender, political party and income — say the American Dream is achievable, Gallup polling found.

Founder frenzy: 44% of Fortune 500 companies have at least one founder who is an immigrant or the child of immigrants, according to stats from New American Economy, founded by Michael Bloomberg. 

Upward mobility: Even the children of immigrants who fall in the poorest quarter of the U.S. end up in the middle class, Princeton researchers found.

Self-made wealth: 80% of America's millionaires — foreign- and U.S.-born — are first-generation.

The bottom line: The U.S. remains the leading destination for immigrants with big dreams. 20% of all the world’s immigrants are in the U.S., according to Pew Research Center.

Editor's note: This story was originally published on May 10.

The American Dream is alive for immigrants

44% of Fortune 500 companies have an immigrant founder.

Illustration of a door made of an American flag opening with light pouring out.  

Immigration

Economy & Business

President Biden has made the COVID-19 crisis and a post-Trump return to national unity and traditional democratic ideals his top priorities. From vaccinations to stimulus to schools, Biden is seeking bipartisan compromise while showing a willingness to use executive authority and bare Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate to implement his policies. Republican leaders are navigating deep party divisions over if and how to move beyond former President Trump.

Politics & Policy

Never have so many kids reported being so sad and stressed.

Why it matters: The American Academy of Pediatrics declared the mental health crisis among children and teens a national emergency.

Zoom out: Consider these troubling stats, reported by Axios health care editor Tina Reed.

Mental distress: More than 40% of teens said they persistently felt sad or hopeless during 2021, a CDC survey found.

Risky behavior: The same survey found increased use of alcohol and drugs during the shutdown.

Abuse: 55% reported emotional abuse from a parent or other adult in the home. Over 10% reported physical abuse.

Here's how all of us — parents, relatives, friends, mentors — can help:

Look for outward signs that something's wrong — rapid weight gain or loss, falling grades, mood swings, frequent headaches and fatigue. Don't avert your gaze. 

Don't just watch — ask. Young people want attention and questions, even if they act otherwise.

Read between the lines. "We look at kids who are irritable or angry, and we say they're bad or mad," says Ken Ginsburg, a pediatrician and founder of the Center for Parent and Teen Communication. "That's how they show they're sad."

Call in professionals. If the price is steep, start with cheap or free resources at the child's pediatrician's office, school or house of worship. All those places have adults trained to counsel. Here's a guide for broaching therapy with teens. 

Insist on answers. Don't assume specialists are omniscient. Seek second opinions. If they prescribe medication, follow up with them on why and the side effects. Alcohol often causes problems when mixed with meds. Help teens understand this." 

Here are two common pitfalls when helping teens, Emily Pluhar, an adolescent psychologist at Harvard, tells us:

Tiptoeing when worried: "People are so afraid to ask about things like self-harm and suicide because they’re afraid they’ll suggest it," she says. "No data shows that that’s true. So be as direct as possible."

Fearing you're endorsing: "If a teen says, 'My life sucks,' you can say: 'I can see how you feel that way with what's been going on' — without agreeing."

The bottom line: "You don’t need to have the perfect words," Ginsburg says. "You just need to show up."

Editor's note: This article was originally published on May 9.

The state of the teen mental health crisis — and how to help

Kids want attention and questions, even if they act otherwise.

Illustration of a young man walking under a thought bubble shaped raincloud

Mental health

Coronavirus

Never have so many kids reported being so sad and stressed.Why it matters: The American Academy of Pediatrics declared the mental health crisis among children and teens a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="national emergency" data-vars-click-url="https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/the-mental-health-crisis-among-children-and-teens-how-parents-can-help-202203082700" data-vars-content-id="6401c8dd-77d1-4004-9169-7fa531fdea3c" data-vars-headline="The state of the teen mental health crisis — and how to help" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/the-mental-health-crisis-among-children-and-teens-how-parents-can-help-202203082700" target="_blank">national emergency</a>.

The U.S. faces a range of health care flashpoints — unaffordable drugs, opioids, vaping — as we debate whether to adopt universal care. For now, the Affordable Care Act is the law of the land, but Republicans want to issue it a final death blow.

Health

Data: Pew Research Center; Chart: Jacque Schrag/Axios

Asian Americans hail from dozens of countries — and their experiences in America are starkly different depending on their origins.

Why it matters: This vast, diverse group is often lumped together under the "model minority myth" — the stereotype that all Asian Americans are well-educated, wealthy and successful. 

If you look at averages, Asian Americans appear to be richer and better educated than the average American.

If you disaggregate the data, the model minority myth crumbles. We see high levels of poverty and below-average levels of educational attainment.

But because that data is seldom disaggregated, "Asian Americans have had to make the case over and over again that they suffer from racism and hostility and violence," says Ellen Wu, a history professor at Indiana University. 

The big picture: The U.S. Asian American population doubled from 2000 to 2019, hitting 22 million. Asians are the fastest-growing group in America — outpacing white, Black and Hispanic Americans and projected to pass 46 million by 2060, according to the Pew Research Center.

"They all have very different starting points," says Neil Ruiz, associate director of race and ethnicity research at the Pew Research Center.

Consider, for example, an Indian immigrant who comes to the U.S. via H-1B visa for a high-paying gig at a tech company. That person will have a far easier time building generational wealth than a Burmese refugee coming to America to escape conflict, Ruiz says.

By the numbers: The median income of Asian households in the U.S is $85,800, and 54% have college degrees, per Pew.

But only three groups — Indians, Filipinos and Sri Lankans — fall above that household income. And college attainment for many groups is well below the average.

Data: Pew Research Center; Table: Thomas Oide/Axios

The stakes: "So many groups have been neglected and ignored," says Quyên Dinh, executive director of the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center.

"People are not always convinced that Asian Americans are a legitimate minority group that deserve to be included in affirmative action and diversity initiatives," says Wu.

For example, 30% of Southeast Asians — a region encompassing nations like Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos — don't have high school degrees.

"Because of the model minority myth, these students' silence in classrooms is misinterpreted as understanding instead of a cry for help," Dinh says.

What to watch: Activists and experts see a silver lining in the recent spikes in anti-Asian violence. "There is a new spotlight on the Asian American community," says Dinh.

"Awful things have always happened," Wu says. "But now Asians are collecting the data and recording what's happening, and Asian journalists are amplifying these stories."

Redefining Asian America

Their experiences in America are starkly different depending on their origins.

Asian Americans

Asian Americans hail from dozens of countries — and their experiences in America are starkly different depending on their origins.Why it matters: This vast, diverse group is often lumped together under the &quot;model minority myth&quot; — the stereotype that all Asian Americans are well-educated, wealthy and successful.

The war and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine has created a complex challenge in America’s classrooms: How do we teach it?

Why it matters: There’s no avoiding it. The war is on TikTok, Instagram and other platforms kids frequent. And how teachers and parents talk with students about global events like this one shapes their views of the world.

“I’ve been sprinkling it in almost every day,” says Sari Beth Rosenberg, who teaches high school history in New York City. “When kids learn about World War II, it’s in documentary footage. Seeing this stuff adds a more human element and sensitizes them to what war really means.”

What's happening: Kids — from elementary to high school — are encountering images and videos from the war on television and social media. And they have questions.

When it comes to younger kids, teachers and parents should explain the war and answer questions in clear and simple terms, says Dawn Huebner, a child psychologist in New Hampshire. Start by asking kids what they've already seen and heard and go from there.

"Explain it in a way that a child can relate to," she says. "Talk about bullying, or someone trying to take something that isn't theirs."

But it's important not to oversimplify. Educators and parents should help kids steer clear of generalizations. Tell them that individuals — like President Vladimir Putin — are perpetrating the violence, and not the Russian people, Huebner says.

It's also key to assure young kids that while we care about what's happening in the world, we're personally safe and far from danger, she notes.

Middle and high schoolers are old enough to learn about the war in their classrooms. “It’s such a mistake to get rigid in your curriculum to the point where you don’t address the elephant in the room,” says Rosenberg. 

Rosenberg says she encourages kids to have open discussions about current events and connect the situation in Ukraine to other conflicts they've learned about, like the World Wars and the Cold War.

She has also compared the vandalism of Russian businesses to anti-German sentiment in the U.S. in the mid-20th century.

"The war in Ukraine added some complexity to things that started to feel like stale lessons," she says.

The bottom line: The biggest mistake is to ignore questions about the war, experts tell Axios. "Kids, left alone, can misinterpret so much," Mary Alvord, a child psychologist in Maryland, says.

This is a chance to teach all kids about empathy and resilience, says Alvord. "Even little kids can bake cookies and sell them at a bake sale that benefits the people of Ukraine." And that can be a critical practical lesson.

When they get older, “teaching the war is empowering kids to realize that they too can study and interpret history and come up with new ways of looking at it and connecting it,” says Rosenberg.

How schools teach about a war when kids can see it on TikTok

Experts say ignoring the war is the worst thing you can do.

Illustration of a composition school notebook with a camouflage pattern

Russian invasion of Ukraine

Russia

The war and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine has created a complex challenge in America’s classrooms: How do we teach it?Why it matters: There’s no avoiding it. The war is on TikTok, Instagram and other platforms kids frequent. And how teachers and parents talk with students about global events like this one shapes their views of the world.

China is becoming the most formidable rival America has faced, and the risk of confrontation with Russia, North Korea or Iran still looms. Authoritarians are rising, the chaotic Afghanistan exit revealed the limits of U.S. power, and the pandemic, climate change and other critical challenges continue to pose grave threats.

World

Axios AM

Bust out the Kleenex: Each of the three of us are going to share "1 big lesson" from our mothers — and we want you to do the same. 

What Erica learned: Don’t just say — do. 

It’s not typical in Nepal (where my parents emigrated from) to talk about your feelings. But my mom, Muna Joshi, always shows us how much she loves us through acts of kindness that speak volumes. 

She still puts out fresh fruit for me when I visit. And if I mention I’ve been shopping for something like a rice cooker or a raincoat, she sends me home with hers on the spot. I learned there are a million ways to constantly tell people you love and appreciate them.

My mother — Barbara Allen, who had four kids in four years, and now lives in Oregon — was thrifty. She went years without a new dress. But she’d always reach for the check when getting lunch with someone. "I'll treat," she'd say.

We never had a big discussion about either trait — yet both of them are now me to a T, as she puts it. I watched, listened and learned. Good or bad, the kids in our life are doing the same.

What Jim learned: True, unconditional love.

I can say this without exaggeration: There has never been one second in my life that my mother, Joan VandeHei, has shown anything other than absolute, unshakable love, whether I was getting tossed in jail for protesting the drinking age or ringing up miserable grades. 

This is the reason I am an entrepreneur today: Unconditional love gave me the self-confidence to take risks, knowing there’s something great to fall back on if I flop. It also made me a better dad. 

Editor's note: This story originally published on May 5.

🏁 Sign up for Finish Line to see the results of our survey. 

Axios Finish Line: What did you learn from mom?

Our moms! From left: Muna Joshi, Barbara Allen, Joan VandeHei

Motherhood

Bust out the Kleenex: Each of the three of us are going to share &quot;1 big lesson&quot; from our mothers — and we want you to do the same. Why it matters: It&#x27;s Mother&#x27;s Day!

Sections

Axios Local

Axios gets you smarter, faster with news & information that matters.

About

Subscribe

Erica Pandey

Stories

Redefining Asian America

The American Dream is alive for immigrants

The state of the teen mental health crisis — and how to help

How schools teach about a war when kids can see it on TikTok

Axios Finish Line: What did you learn from mom?