What’s the main idea of this paragraph? America has been hailed as “the land of the free and the home of the brave”, ever since that frightful night Francis Scott Key penned the words to The Star-Spangled Banner. He believed (as the First Amendment guaranteed) that America was a place where freedom would reign, and every person had the right to pursue every dream. This may have been true for citizens of the U.S., but not so for many immigrants who chose this great country as their home. In fact, many of these travelers have experienced horror beyond imagination. Often, their stories are not ones with happy endings; rather, they experienced hopelessness trying to achieve the American Dream — a dream that was not theirs to have.