Over the course of her nearly 249 years, the United States of America has had a long history affiliated with the notion of freedom. Whether it was gaining freedom from the British or robbing it from the Natives, Hawaiians and various other ethnic groups, the definition of freedom in the U.S. has been everlasting.

The U.S. serves as “the land of the free,” where individuals can immigrate into the country and be invited with rights such as the freedom of speech, press and religion. It appears that overtime, however, privilege in America has become more focused on money, not opportunity.

With the start of the new presidential term, President Donald Trump has begun contemplating the introduction of a “Gold Card” as a means of giving wealthy foreigners a path into the country. According to CNN, the Gold Card is a $5 million card that is expected to give foreigners all green card privileges along with an easier path into citizenship. This pitch was not officially proposed but has been shown as one of Trump’s many “interesting” claims made in the short few months of his second term.

The Gold Card concept however, is not the only instance of the purchasing of freedom in America. In 1990, Congress created the EB-5 program with the goal of stimulating the U.S. economy. Stated by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration services, to gain citizenship through the EB-5 process, a person must invest a minimum of $1.05 million to a new commercial enterprise, or a minimum of $800,000 given to a Targeted Employment Area where unemployment is high.

While the EB-5 program has been active for over 30 years, most Americans have no knowledge of it, especially since many do not have $1.05 million to invest into any kind of organization. On top of that, the majority of people have never met anyone who found their way into this country through the program due to it being such a financial barrier.

The common denominator of this easy path to citizenship in America has always been money. Numerous billionaires, such as Elon Musk, Jensen Huang and Micky Arison, have all made their way into the country with money more than effort or legality. The wealth of their families have allowed them to become billionaires and lead now-popular organizations like Tesla, Google and NVIDIA, respectively.

While these organizations have been successful, it showcases that finances are the leading factor behind the innovators being able to remain in the country. One’s financial status should not be the deciding factor as to if they are able to stay in this country, or even enter the country.

While rich immigrants make their way into the country whether it be through the possible “Gold Cards,” EB-5 or other methods, poor immigrants continue to be deported for trying to benefit the country as a part of the working class. The New York Times reported within the month of February 2025 that 23,000 arrests have been made and 18,000 people have been deported with an estimate of 872 people detained daily.

Many local businesses are shut down every year because of deportations, especially businesses that are massively important on a community level. Many immigrants are working to benefit American society as well as our economy, so it is ridiculous to see how many local businesses are shut down every year because of deportations. Immigrants have always been the backbone of the country, yet America has tried to banish them despite all their great efforts and productions.

The biggest difference between the people who are being detained, arrested and deported and those who are immigrants thriving in this country is wealth. Whether legal or illegal is not the question for opening up the gates to be welcomed into the U.S. The question has always been how much is in their pockets.

With all of the new and old financial methods of gaining citizenship in America, it is important to remember that America has been structured and thrived with the help of immigrants. Whether the immigrants were European, African, Asian or of any other group, this country has been seen as a harbor for dreams and new opportunities. If the U.S. is truly going to be idolized as the land of opportunity, it is going to need to rip off the price tag they so wrongfully slapped onto freedom.