Number Of 'Trumpugees' Leaving America Continues to Rise

Newsweek

6 hours ago

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
A week ahead of a crucial Supreme Court decision on Monday, which delivered yet another blow to the United States' transgender community, Grover Wehman-Brown was at "the bitter end of packing" ahead of their big move to Europe.
Wehman-Brown, a transgender writer and consultant, read the writing on the wall long before the country's top court threw out judicial decisions favoring trans people and sided with states that have introduced bans on youth transgender care, like Tennessee.
In the years since President Donald Trump's first mandate, Wehman-Brown had noticed that things were changing in the country. Last year, in the lead-up to the presidential election, they became sure: the U.S. was no longer a country where their non-traditional, LGBTQ+ family could thrive, or even feel welcome.
They are hardly the only people to feel that way. The past few months have seen a surge in the number of Americans looking into leaving the U.S. or seeking dual citizenship because of the political climate gripping the country, especially LGBTQ+ individuals and families.
A recent survey conducted by Harris Poll found that four in 10 U.S. adults (42 percent) have considered or plan to relocate outside the country to improve their quality of life or financial position. Among younger generations, these numbers were even higher, at 63 percent among Gen Zers and 52 percent among millennials.
Photo-illustration by Newsweek/Getty/Canva
One company helping Americans relocate to the Netherlands, GTFO Tours, reported a 200 percent increase in inquiries from U.S. nationals in the days following Trump's decision to deploy hundreds of National Guard troops to quell anti-deportation protests in Los Angeles last month. The company refers to them as "Trumpugees."
"I think a lot of Americans have sort of been waiting to see how things are going, but they just keep getting worse," Bethany Quinn, a relocation coach working for GTFO Tours, told Newsweek.
Since January, there has been a series of crucial "moments" that have been identified with a spike in interest among U.S. nationals to relocate abroad.
"The inauguration was one of the moments, where on the first day Trump issued 30 different executive orders that reversed 60+ years of progress that people have made," Quinn said. "And then, I think, the fact that Trump took control of the military to attack U.S. citizens [in Los Angeles] was also deeply deeply concerning."
That might have been the moment when many Americans realized that even living in a blue state couldn't keep them away from the conservative wave sweeping the country.
"I think in the past, there have been a lot of very wealthy people who have sort of moved around depending on when and where the tax laws are," Quinn said. "And I think there is probably an increase in folks doing that too now, but a lot of Americans are just looking to have a peaceful life. They just wanna live their lives and they don't want to worry about their safety. They don't wanna worry about their government collapsing."
'I Don't Want To Shrink Again'
Wehman-Brown is originally from rural Ohio, but has moved with their wife to many different cities and regions around the U.S. for the 14 years they have been together, "trying to find the right mix of things we need in our life."
That includes LGBTQ+ friendly places with strong economies and job opportunities, access to nature and greenery, a good environment to raise kids, and that are neither too hot nor too expensive.
For the past decade, they have been moving back and forth between the San Francisco Bay Area and western Massachusetts, where they lived until last week. But even these places, regarded among the most liberal in the country, did not offer Wehman-Brown's family the safety and stability they were seeking.
"I have been working in social justice communications and tracking the news very closely, both in terms of housing costs and housing unaffordability and the increasingly fraying social net. And I was seeing that crisis continue to get worse and worse," Wehman-Brown told Newsweek.
"I was also working for an organization tracking and responding to white supremacy; and as I was tracking the rise of the right, I started talking very seriously with my wife about considering making life elsewhere."
Grover Wehman-Brown (inset). Main: Wehman-Brown's family during a visit to the Netherlands ahead of their move from the United States.
Grover Wehman-Brown (inset). Main: Wehman-Brown's family during a visit to the Netherlands ahead of their move from the United States.
Grover Wehman-Brown/EPLi
Wehman-Brown became increasingly aware that LGBTQ+ people in the U.S. were facing a political and legal backlash. "I found myself becoming more and more isolated again as I was assessing increased risk," they said.
"I'm trans and I'm visibly gender non-conforming and I grew up in the 90s in rural Ohio and experienced a lot of violence, people running me off the roads, job discrimination, people slamming me into lockers, people threatening to kill me or assault me for being in a straight bar," they said.
"That kind of constant threat and vigilance is what I came out into, and it feels like we've returned to a time where some of those tensions are present again in my life," they said, even though they were living "in one of the most liberal and queer-affirming states in our country."
Wehman-Brown decided they didn't want to "shrink" again, and they wanted their kids, aged 10 and 12, to live the best lives possible.
"They are at a very specific time in their lives, where what happens in the next 10 years is going to set the stage for their life," they said.
Making Life Elsewhere
About three weeks into the second Trump administration, when Elon Musk started mass layoffs and cuts at federal agencies, Wehman-Brown and their wife decided to move their family to the Netherlands.
"I had gone to the Netherlands once 15 years ago, and I really liked the short amount of time I spent there, so I was like, 'this is really a lovely place where everybody seems busy and purposeful, but cooperating well together and things are running smoothly,'" they said.
Free health insurance, well-funded schools and the widespread use of English in Dutch society sealed the deal. However, despite numerous perks to look forward to, it has been challenging to take the step to leave the U.S., potentially for good.
"Emotionally, it's just been very hard to unwind the connections and community relationships we've built here," Wehman-Brown said.
"And I also love the land we live on, our house. It's sad to walk away from caring for it," they added.
"Logistically, we were pretty worried about finding a house, because we've heard it's been really challenging," they said.
But working with a company that helps expats find housing in the Netherlands, Wehman-Brown and their family have found a "really great apartment" to rent, which also allowed them to get a Dutch-American Friendship Treaty (DAFT) visa.
This visa, aimed at American entrepreneurs, "is one of the easiest ways for Americans to move to Europe," Quinn said. "A lot of other countries have start-up visas, but they tend to have higher capital requirements, and they also are pickier about what kind of industry you can work in," they added.
"But in the Netherlands, you can really do pretty much any kind of freelancing. I know a guy who sells brownies at the market and has a very successful business," they said.
Wehman-Brown hopes to continue working in writing and consulting, while their kids have luckily found a spot in an international school in the Netherlands. Despite their disillusionment with how things are going in the U.S., Wehman-Brown has not given up on the country entirely yet.
"I still believe that this country is full of mostly amazing, brave, creative people who ultimately want to live peacefully together," they said. "And I'm hopeful that the U.S. in 15 or 20 years might be a place where I want to spend large chunks of my life again."