this post was submitted on 03 May 2025
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With all the dismal news about America lately, my home, I'm starting to seriously look at where else to move.

Putting aside for now the difficulty of actually immigrating to some countries, I'm curious on the opinions of others (especially people living outside the U.S) on this.

What I'm looking for in a country is, I imagine, similar to many people. I'm trying to find somewhere that will exhibit:

  • Low racism
  • Low sexism
  • Low LGBTQ-phobia
  • Strong laws around food quality and safety
  • Strong laws about environmental protection
  • Strong laws against unethical corporate practices (monopoly, corruption, lobbying, etc)
  • Strong laws for privacy
  • Good treatment of mentally ill, homeless, and impoverished people

Those are the real important things. Of course the nice-to-haves are almost too obvious to be worth listing, low cost of living, strong art and cultural scene, nice environment, and so on.

My actual constraints that might really matter are that I only speak English (and maybe like A1-2 level German). It seems incredibly intimidating to try to find employment somewhere when I can hardly speak the language.

I know nowhere on Earth is perfect, just curious what people may have to suggest. I hope this question isn't too selfish to ask here.

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[โ€“] Cowbee@lemmy.ml 3 points 1 month ago (5 children)

It's important to consider trends and trajectories, while countries like Ireland and whatnot may appear to satisfy a lot of these, they are also struggling with the same decaying Capitalist system and are being dragged down by US decay as well. Countries like China that are improving rapidly might be more worth considering.

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[โ€“] keepee@lemmy.world 3 points 1 month ago

I'm in a similar boat and was considering moving to Ireland or Chile. In the end, I couldn't overcome the immigration requirements, so I decided to just move to a better state within the US. Not sure if it's the best option, but maybe that could also improve things for you.

[โ€“] Microw@lemm.ee 3 points 1 month ago

Portugal, but they hate expats at this point because they got overrun by them in the last couple of years

[โ€“] TheOubliette@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 month ago (26 children)

I suggest developing a plan that is not just about building a better lifenfor yourself, but for others and community. For example, China ticks all of your boxes (yes, even privacy in comparison to the US), but it is also important to consider how you would personally make China better in the process, as you are, by moving, saying that your current conditions are pushing you to want to leave. So what about your current place of living was driven to that and how can this be made the case the world over?

Ultimately, capitalism is the underlying force of reaction, conservatism, and deprivation. It sets the guard rails of social policy, funds and purges the thought-moving forces of society. It creates homelessness. It destroys countries and societies, forcing them to adopy defensive and antagonistic positions to be viable and not only dominated. So I would recommend also thinking of this question in terms of how you might build your life as well as do well in fighting capitalism. As, ultimately, if this force is not recognized, you might find a place that ticka your boxes but is ultimately a forcr for capitalist expansion, e.g. most OECD countries. This wouldn't make you a bad person but it is a major wrinkle in the idea of building a good life by finding a place based on these (all very reasonable) boxes to tick off.

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[โ€“] wuphysics87@lemmy.ml 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

You called America your home. There is something to be said for home improvement. I'm fortunate to be dual citizen, so I could leave whenever I want. I choose not to because it is where my parents, my sister and her kids are. I'll stay here and make whatever improvements, however small they are, as long as my folks still live here.

[โ€“] mfed1122@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 1 month ago

Yes, I wouldn't be renouncing U.S citizenship unless I really had to. I've stayed this long precisely because I don't want to leave the "problem spot" and cause it to only have extremists left over living here. I do try to support events and businesses that support causes I agree with, but that's about all there is to do as far as I can see. As I said in other comments, I would truly prefer to fix things here, as I like many things about my life here. But it's starting to feel like I'm complicit in something wrong by remaining a resident and I'm not sure what to do about it.

[โ€“] Ymer@feddit.dk 2 points 1 month ago

Consider your education and professional background and how well you'll integrate in the workforce of whatever countries you're looking at. Look into general unemployment rates as well as for your specific area of expertise. Can you work remotely?

[โ€“] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Privacy, food safety and environmental regulation basically mean Europe, but then Europe has crazy anti-migrant sentiment at this point. So, maybe one of the Scandinavian countries that's still relatively welcoming? Portugal might also track, if you don't mind a country that's economically moribund.

[โ€“] ThrowawayPermanente@sh.itjust.works 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Toronto and Vancouver are expensive but you definitely get what you pay for

[โ€“] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (2 children)

Honestly I don't get what the hype with Toronto is. It costs like Vancouver but with Calgary's weather and general vibes.

[โ€“] ThrowawayPermanente@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Good transit, good jobs, lots of cultural stuff, amazing food. The weather definitely isn't great but it's still consistently a few degrees warmer than Calgary in the winter. Vancouver obviously crushes both of them in this category.

[โ€“] CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Yeah, similar weather relatively speaking.

I've never been to Toronto, so I can't talk too much trash, but I have been to Vancouver many times and experienced how awesome it is. And, they both cost a similar amount!

[โ€“] Witchfire@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Toronto is amazing. It's a lot like NYC but clean, better run, and less densely populated. My friend describes it as NYC run by the Swiss, and I've loved all the time I've spent there

The weather can be hit or miss, but it didn't bother me, even with the endless snow. I'm moving there soon and I'm super excited for it.

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