An Indian enters America with dreams. He burns the midnight oil and expects success and wealth. They say that the USA, the land of the free and the home of the brave, never fails the deserving. This is the American dream that many Indians are chasing risking his life through the illegal “dunki route”. to enter the US. But Americans are leaving the US amid political division and economic hardship. Talk of leaving the US has grown since Donald Trump won the presidential election, widening the cracks.

This also led to a spike in nomadic visas after the US election results were announced and Trump swept it. People are allowed to work remotely from a foreign country for an extended period of time with these visas.

Google searches by Americans to move to Europe, Canada and Mexico increased many times after Trump’s victory.

This is also because a part of Americans who consider themselves liberal do not feel that they can live in the USA under the Trump regime. They see Trump, who has promised to crack down on immigration and has an anti-abortion stance, as a divisive figure.

Although there is no hard data, several reports, including in The New York Times and USA Today, and online discussions reveal this trend.

A similar trend was seen in 2016, when Trump defeated Hillary Clinton to become president.

The trend has a name — AmerExit.

WHY WE LIKE AMERICANS

“I would say at least 50 percent of our friends are thinking about moving, politics at least a factor for most of them,” said Justin Knepper, 48, who moved from California to Portugal in the last election. told USA Today about the current scenario.

Even many expats are looking to move to a country “that aligns with their values, from universal health care to escaping the polarized political landscape of the United States,” USA Today reports.

Trump’s presidency has brought a sense of gloom and despair to many who believe they will be directly affected by his policies.

“I would challenge you to find anyone who is as depressed and dark and scared as I am,” Deirdre Roney told USA Today a few months before the US election.

Deirdre and her husband obtained dual citizenship of the Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda and left.

Dee Segler left the US just one day before the US presidential election, but she had been planning this for a long time.

It wasn’t the immediate election that caused her to suddenly leave, but the general political climate in the US.

A layoff, no promotion, and difficulty making ends meet add to the reasons for saying goodbye to the US. For her, it was her disillusionment with corporate America.

PEOPLE ON SOCIAL MEDIA TO DISCUSS AMEREXIT

People are also taking to social media to say they plan to leave the US. There is a Reddit handle called r/AmerExit.

This handle saw a surge of posts after Trump won the recent US election. People came up with suggestions for job opportunities in Canada and Finland.

They also discussed countries with better rights for transsexuals and homosexuals.

Exit plans are also discussed on X.

“I fear for my life…. My husband and I have voted in every election for the past 30 years. But this is the last straw! We decided to pack our bags and leave! We love America, but we can’t. I live in a country run by a racist dictator like Donald Trump Goodbye America,” wrote user X.

Cindy Sheahan also moved to Sicily in October because of the “increasingly polarized and divisive climate in the US.”

When asked about her plan to return, she said it was impossible.

“Another Trump term is not negotiable for me,” she told USA Today.

“They are finding that Europe offers a political climate that feels less changed, less divided and generally more tolerant,” Cepee Tabibian told US media.

PEOPLE SAID IT LOOKS LIKE IT, THIS TIME IT’S REAL

Others were drawn to Europe for its safety, after the US ranked 131 out of 162 in the 2024 Global Peace Index.

Freya Wilson left Utah with her partner. Wilson is a transgender who left the US after hearing about Project 2025 and get scared about his proposal against gender reassignment surgeries, The New York Times reports.

“My partner and I were scared,” she said.

The couple found a job as a teacher before the election and decided to leave.

Sara Dawn O’Dell, a 42-year-old woman, moved from Olympia, Washington, to British Columbia in Canada, fearing abortion bans, the NYT reported.

David Lesperance, a Canadian tax and immigration adviser who helps people obtain dual citizenship, told the NYT that most of his US clients now have concerns about “political polarization and gridlock, anti-Semitism, gun violence, threats to of LGBTQ+ rights, fear of being ruled by ‘the other side’ and a Trump administration”.

“What’s different today is that people are acting on it,” Lesperance said. “They feel the danger is real.”

Anecdotal evidence also suggests that people seeking or moving from the US are disproportionately female.

“WHERE CAN I MOVE”, PEOPLE ASK ON GOOGLE AFTER THE NEW CHOICE

That many Americans want to leave the US is also reflected in their Google searches after Trump won the election.

Google search for “moving to Canada”, “moving to New Zealand from USA” and “moving to Germany” and other countries started trending.

Many also searched for how to move to Europe and Portugal.

People living in Europe responded to the Americans’ plan on social media as well.

“I’m a little annoyed by these people who want to leave the US because Trump was elected. Well, news. You need a proper visa in Europe, American or not. It can take a long time if you want to stay. So good luck, things have changed,” wrote user X.

“Is it time to leave the US? It seems so… The rise of Americans looking to Europe as a new home,” wrote another user on X.

The outcome of the recent presidential election and what a new Trump regime would bring added to the economic reasons why people are fleeing or planning to leave the US. What is interesting is that Americans are leaving the US in search of better opportunities and political climate elsewhere, even as Indians risk chasing the American dream.