American Refugees

 

I've often heard Americans say over the years, "If (fill in the name) is elected, I'm leaving the United States. Very rarely do they.

Not after 2024. People didn't just say it. They did it.

This past week we've hosted a couple who have sold everything to move to Europe. They call themselves American refugees.

After they left we were having morning coffee with a couple of Brits who were just back from lunch in Spain. When you live near the border, it's easy to border hop for anything as simple as a cup of coffee.

They reported sitting next to a table full of Americans who also called themselves American refugees.  

They knew they were Americans, they said, because they were speaking loudly. Americans have the reputation of speaking loudly. 

There is a difference between American refugees and those that have been bombed out of their homes, attack by armies, ridden in small boats that could dump them into seas, displaced by gangs, lost everything, walked hundreds, maybe thousands of miles and suffered like none of us can imagine. 

American refugees often have resources such as sales from property, savings, skills and talents that might land them a better job if an employer is not already waiting for them.

That does not mean that American refugees aren't suffering emotionally. Leaving family, friends for an unknown future can  be scary. Reactions may vary with generation. A person who leaves because they can get a free or inexpensive degree is very different from people with pensions and social security. 

American refugees report moments of overwhelming sadness at what is happening in the United States. The excitement of a new life helps but it is does not erase the sadness of what is lost.  

They don't think of themselves as the huddled masses described  on the Statue of Liberty. Nor do they think of themselves as those being snatched by ICE and held in primitive conditions. Most of those who think of themselves as American refugees may be surprised at the number of hoops they have to jump thru to settle in a new country and the learning curve to adjust to a new culture and language. 

Many who call themselves refugees talk about missing family, especially grandchildren whose special occasions they will miss. Some express fear of reentering the U.S. with border officials looking at phones and laptops where they criticized the government. And stories of people like themselves being detained at the border does little to reassure them. "I'll wait for a new administration, they tell themselves" and hope they won't have to stand at a dying parent's bedside before then.

In the past Americans who moved to other countries might call themselves expats. The term refugee is new and scary.