Dystopian America: 36 Unsettling Photos From Across The Country

When you imagine a futuristic society, you might picture cars that can fly and robots that will sweep and mop your floors for you. But with all of the technological advancements we’ve seen in recent years, many people have noticed that they’re not all for the best. Artificial intelligence, for example, has been blamed for stealing jobs, making humans dumber, and for further isolating lonely individuals.

Meanwhile, various governments around the world seem to be leaning into the idea that the future has to be dystopic, particularly the United States. A dystopian society is one that’s “under extreme control with issues of inequality, constant surveillance, propaganda, and loss of individuality,” Serena Edwards writes for The Brooklyn College Vanguard. And many Americans feel like that sounds pretty familiar. 

Regardless of how you feel about the current U.S. president’s policies, there’s no question that he’s a controversial figure. He pardoned nearly 1,600 people who illegally stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021. And he publicly berated Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on live television, CT Insider reports.

He has slashed funding for research grants, public school programs, social service programs, environmental cleanup initiatives, and more. And he’s seemingly given ICE free range to detain anyone they want, even American citizens. And more recently, he’s decided that he’s going to take Greenland, whether they like it or not. With all of the questionable decisions the president has made, many Americans feel like he came right out of a dystopian novel. 

Many people enjoy reading books or watching films about dystopian societies, but living through one isn’t as much fun. Currently, in the United States, 35% of citizens say they can’t access quality, affordable healthcare. And nearly two-thirds of Americans say they had to switch to cheaper groceries or buy less food altogether in the past year. Meanwhile, the top 1% of the nation owns nearly one-third of the country’s wealth.  

Another aspect of the United States that some people consider pretty dystopian is the fact that it’s incredibly difficult to have children. Well, you can have them, but it might cost you over $25K in hospital bills. Then, if you’re lucky, you’ll get ten weeks off from work (unpaid, of course) before you have to be back in the office. And you’ll have to hire a nanny or pay for expensive childcare to be able to return to your job. 

Once your children are old enough to go to school in the United States, you’ll have to make sure that they’re prepared to handle any situation. Unfortunately, American schools experience more violence than schools in any other industrialized nation, so kids have to prepare for the worst. Of course, the vast majority of them will be safe and sound in the classroom. But sadly, you never know when tragedy will strike. So it’s better to be safe than sorry. 

Because some of the wealthiest individuals on the planet live in the United States, one might think that they would be happy to help the less fortunate. But in reality, many billionaires would rather take trips to space or spend $44 billion on a social media platform than donate to those in need. Who cares about their thousands of employees who can’t afford food or housing, right?   

Now, most of us have been told from a young age that if we get a great education, our future will be full of endless opportunities. But in reality, over 42 million Americans have been saddled with federal student loan debt, and the total student debt balance is $1.81 trillion. On average, it takes Americans about 20 years to pay off their student loans, but it can take some over 25. It feels a bit dystopian to know that the degree you got to ensure that you could land a good job will take decades of paychecks from said job to pay off.   

Do you feel like you’re living in a dystopian society after seeing all of these pics, pandas? We hope you don’t feel too depressed after scrolling through this list, but if you do, know that you’re not alone in this. Keep upvoting the images that you can’t believe aren’t satire, and if you’re interested in seeing even more dystopian images from real life, check out this Bored Panda list next. 

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