Do Americans Need to Escape Trump’s America Before it’s Too Late?

By Séamus Wagner

It’s only been two weeks since the end of the US Elections, and the world is still reeling from the results. In a landslide, which has been blamed on anything from the radicalisation of young men to accusations that the Democratic Party has “abandoned working class people”, Donald J. Trump has won the Presidency [1]. As an American who has lived overseas most of my life, it’s an odd thing to process. Despite being across an ocean, I cannot help but feel dread over the prospect of a man many have compared to Adolf Hitler returning to the Presidency.

However, for some, my position is enviable. Among those Americans appalled by the idea of living under a second Trump Presidency, moving overseas has become a popular sentiment. 1 in 5 Americans have stated their desire to move abroad due to unfavourable election results, and desires to migrate are at an all time high for America and Canada [2] [3]. I even saw, in what has to be the most dystopian Instagram story I’ve ever seen, a law firm offering support for citizenship renunciation just hours after the election was called. In the advert, Trump’s silhouette stands behind the tagline: “Not the result you were hoping for? Renounce your citizenship the right way!”. A far from uplifting message to a generation of Americans hoping to be anything except American.

Beyond surveys and tone-deaf adverts, the desire to ‘escape’ has been echoed by my loved ones. On election night my uncle jokingly asked me if I had any room in my dorm for him and his family. My friends have expressed that, if given the chance, they’d flee to protect their disabled loved ones, to escape a political system they feel disillusioned with, or out of fear of the danger a Trump presidency poses to them as a trans woman. In an America they see as having “always been a terrible country”, as having elected a President who will “put [them] in danger”, and whose identities are things “that the Republican party despises”, the only hope they have is getting out.

The unfortunate reality, speaking as one of the lucky few who have ‘got out’, is that there is no ‘getting out’. Ignoring the financial barriers, the outside world is not somehow immune to populists like Trump. Despite its hyper-nationalism, Trumpism is international. Far-right parties have been steadily growing over in recent years, with the likes of Germany’s AfD and France’s RN greatly enjoying significant electoral gains. In some countries, like Italy or the Netherlands, these parties have come to power. Even within the UK and Ireland, Trumpist movements and beliefs have gained steam. In line with Trump’s heavy anti-immigration rhetoric, the UK, just this year, saw a series of pogroms targeted against migrants and people of colour. Rioters partially set fire to a hotel housing migrants, and gangs of racist extremists attacked and vandalised minority-owned businesses in Belfast [4] [5]. Across the border, in the Republic of Ireland, a nascent far-right movement has been growing, with American support, ever since the riots in Dublin last year [6].

The truth is that Trumpism, neofascism, populism, whatever you want to call it, is on the rise. I have not ‘escaped’ Trump by being overseas, I just have to deal with Trump under a different name. Counterparts that are sure to be spurred on by Trump’s inauguration and the ensuing fallout. In a sick parallel to the 1920s, we are in a time of far-right agitation and authoritarian tendencies, and changing your address won’t spare you from that.

So, should we just give up hope? Should we just accept the reality that Trump has won and any hope of a better future is gone? Sometimes I consider the idea. I watch politicians treat me and my community as beneath their respect or care, and I wonder if I should just run away from it all [7]. However, the idea of giving up is, as one of my more optimistic friends put it, “not an option”. When Swastikas flew over Europe, partisans and Allied soldiers did not give up. When Marine Le Pen threatened to win French elections in a landslide, French voters did not give up [8]. When the Southport rioters attempted to bum cities to the ground, the hundreds of thousands who mobilised against them did not give up [9].

So, from an American abroad to the Americans back home, do not give up. Your safety isn’t in a visa, it’s in you. It’s in how willing you are to fight, how many times you’re willing to pick yourself up after defeat and keep on building a better future. The far-right might be rising, the world might get worse, and Trump very well might once again become President. But so long as you are alive, you can fight against them at every comer. So long as you keep fighting, and so long as we keep fighting with you, we will win. We’ll win from America to Northern Ireland to every other comer of the globe. In the words of Trade Unionist Mary Harris Jones, we’ll “pray for the dead, and fight like hell for the living!” [10].

Sources:

[1] X (formerly Twitter). (2024). x.com. https://twitter.com/BemieSanders/status/1854271157135941698.

[2] Clark, R. and Clark, R. (2024). Survey: Where Americans are Relocating Post-Election. [online] Casino.org Blog. Available at: https://www.casino.org/blog/american-relocation-post-election/.

[3] Ray, J. (2024). [online] Gallup.com. Available at: https://news.gallup.com/poll/652748/desire-migrate-remains-record-high.aspx.

[4] Rotherham hotel riot: Man admits starting fire during disorder. (2024). BBC News.[online] 8 Nov. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce893jg3pzdo.

[5] Marshall, D. (2024). Belfast violence: What happened at the weekend? [online] BBC News. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9wjjr7wq12o.

[6] Gilbert, D. (2024). The Influence of the US Far Right on Ireland Is Growing. WIRED. [online] doi:https:/ /doi.org/1030237.jpg%20120w.

[7] Francis, S. and Zeffman, H. (2024). Rishi Sunak faces calls to apologise over trans jibe to Starmer at PMQs. BBCNews.[online] 7 Feb. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68229785.

[8] POLITICO. (2024). Frenchle.ftbeatsLePensfarrightinelectionshock.[online] Available at: https://www.politico.eu/article/france-legislative-election-2024-second-round-front-populaire-jea n-luc-melenchon-raphael-glucksmann-shock-victory/.

[9] Sky News. (2024). UK riots latest: Thousandstakepartinanti-racism protests; petrol bomb thrownatmosquein’raciallymotivated’incident.[online] Available at: https://news.sky.com/story/uk-riots-latest-counter-protesters-gather-in-hackney-as-100-far-right­ protests-planned-tonight-13186819.

[10] Anon, (n.d.). PrayfortheDeadandFightLikeHellfortheLiving– QuoteInvestigator. [online] Available at: https://quoteinvestigator.com/2019/01/08/fight/.