All Langston Hughes ever wanted was for people to realize their dreams and have the motivation to drive change. However, Hughes' dreams were almost shattered for expressing himself in one of his poems as he usually does. In 1940, Hughes was the subject of an FBI investigation following the publication of his poem "Goodbye Christ." Numerous accusations had been made, claiming that Hughes “…[was] a member of the Communist Party, [ran] for public office, called for a race war, married a white woman, and studied communism in the USSR” (Dyson, p. 45). , 2002). Even though Hughes' days with the rest of the company seemed numbered, Hughes made sure his dreams were not forgotten. Hughes continued to write poetry during this difficult time, including his poem "A Dream Deferred." Hughes realized that when he wrote this poem, it needed to be worded in a way that would get his message across without raising any red flags. Even though his poem was going to be published, the editors who had helped Hughes were fired (Miller, np, 2012). When Hughes was ordered to appear before the Un-American Activities Committee in 1953, he sought assurance that he would not end up in prison without abandoning his ideals. Hughes later released a statement regarding himself and his poetry saying that he believed "...in an America that changes as Americans want it to change", which is exactly what is reflected in "A Dream Deferred" (Dyson, p. 45, 2002). ). Looking at the past events encountered by Hughes before the publication of “A Dream Deferred,” it is evident that one can see the importance of pursuing one's dreams. People will try to stand in the way of the dreams of Hughes, Harlem, the African-American community... middle of paper ......k above. In other words, the idea of ​​what Harlem was and what it could have "exploded" into almost everyone's minds. However, as Harlem began to sink, Hughes sought to turn Harlem around. In 1951, amidst the chaos in Harlem, Hughes published his poem "A Dream Deferred" in hopes of drawing people's attention to the devastating effects Harlem was experiencing. Even though issues surrounding racism began to be addressed in the 1960s, Harlem continued to collapse. It wasn't until the 1980s that Harlem began to recover. Patrols began to increase to deter crime and retail stores began to gradually open, as seen at 65 East 125th Street. However, even though Harlem had begun to undergo a process of gentrification, with every step forward taken over the previous fifty years, it seemed as if Harlem had taken two steps back...