Did you see that recent UK Guardian ‘article’: “Why are so many Americans moving to Portugal? Apart from the obvious reason…”? And did it irk you like it irked me? There are a number of things about the headline alone that congest the craw, as it were.
“So many”, for a start, is such an unhelpful and subjective pair of words, and don’t get me started about the “obvious reason”, at least not yet, which is as crass as it’s clever in drawing in the reader, like a mouse to cheese-topped trap.
I parenthesised ‘article’ because the Portugal-focused piece is actually something that trades under the name of pass notes, a kind of short attention-span primer or bluffers’ guide that can be consumed quickly from a hand-held device, on the toilet, or just before a meeting, where time needs to be passed or key facts consumed.
And by the once typo-ridden publication’s own admission, it’s a “quick chat designed to tell you everything you need to know about a story you don’t need to know about.” Which I can’t disagree with, but then again can’t un-see either.
I was hooked, of course, by the country in question, our country here, and its reported desperate attractiveness to American immigrants, retirees and – according to The Guardian – what are effectively refugees now in a political as well as financial sense.
Let’s start with the processing of my offence by dealing with the “so many” part. A cursory web search reveals a spike in 2024 from around 14,000 US citizen residents in Portugal to over 21,000 by early 2025. I know, from my own experience of working with Americans, that the Covid phenomenon also boosted numbers, when people had more time on their hands, and an opportunity to re-evaluate life choices. But both up-ticks are hardly alarming, or even truly significant, in the bigger picture of a 10.7 million population.
Sure, Americans have a way of distinguishing themselves and sometimes standing out from the crowd. There are those keen, by their own bold declaration, to blend in and live like a local, who then step, designer-clothes-clad, into a top-of-the-line Tesla, having just dropped a big tip in a small tasca, where their conversation wasn’t exactly kept a secret.
Then others, who you’ll barely notice, somewhat embarrassed by the former stereotype, (as we all are at times about some of our fellow countrymen), who are truly connecting, calmly communicating, in some earnestly learnt Portuguese, and being quietly grateful for this new start, and counterpoint to a culture they have tired of.
But (and it’s here that I take the greatest issue with the tone and assumption of The Guardian’s smug and sneery analysis) the use of “obvious reason” is both cynical and lazy, and not – in my experience of successful American migrants – true, or useful. There are, no doubt, some who cite their loathing of one man as a migration motive, but this is not the norm, and I hope it never will be.
This, to me, is a Trump (and Farage) bashing opportunity, dressed up as a where-to-go migration feature. And I am calling it out as such. Not as an apologist for those two deeply flawed and polarising figures (an inevitable outcome in these times if failing to be outright hateful and angry at the mere mention of their names), but as a still small voice of calm. Someone who has listened more than most to people moving here, and their reasons for doing so, who now red flags anger and fear-based expatriation. And it is on that orientation and incitement of escape and rejection that I would like to say more.
In essence, I want to say “don’t come here, just to be away from there”. Which incidentally applies to any move, anywhere, as far as I am concerned. In contrast, “if you come from somewhere quantifiably disappointing,” the offending article says, “the world is your oyster.” Adding worse still: “Portugal is the best place to go to escape the US.”
I totally get the urge to avoid disappointment and escape, but God help you (and us) if that is your only motivation. And continuing with the theme of last week’s article “I came here to heal” – you do right to put your sense of personal safety and mental health first, but you’ll need a positive vision for your future here too; something to live for rather than be perpetually against. As sure as your ‘baggage’ will follow your luggage, a carry-on guiding light will be necessary, to enlighten and inspire your onward journey in Portugal, and to illuminate the shadows from which you are running.
Please also be mindful of the words of my dear friend and Good Morning Portugal! co-host James ‘An Old Guy in Europe’ Holley, incidentally an American, who recently said to me, when talking of last Sunday’s International Peace Day (who knew?): “Being in Portugal makes it much easier for me to find my peace.”
But he also said: “Nothing makesme anything. Portugal doesn’t make me peaceful. Youdon’t make me happy or unhappy. I do that. I’m responsible for that. But in a certain environment, it becomes easier for me to make that choice. And Portugal certainly makes it easier for me to be at peace. I can choose peace much more easily because, for the most part, my experience with Portuguese people and all the interactions I have are very peaceful, friendly and generous.”
“Peace is always a choice, like happiness,” were the words he signed off with, which bring us full circle to the awkwardness of fleeing America, or anywhere, and moving to Portugal, based solely on an emotional reaction or ideological intolerance. Unresolved, those dark forces will inevitably find fuel to feast on here, where we are not without our own polarising personalities and increasing political turmoil. So, choose, as James puts it. Choose more than fear, anger and resentment. For if you don’t, you might never be free – wherever you go in the world.
