Trump’s Loss, Toronto’s Gain

The exodus began long before the unprecedented cuts and crackdowns of the past few months. Some people made travel plans as far back as 2015, when Trump first became the Republican nominee. Others started packing the moment he won his first term. But most of the departures were set in motion more recently, as Trump began laying waste to key American institutions.

Trump’s first 100 days in office have been defined by an obsession with all that allegedly flows into the US across international borders (migrants, fentanyl, under-taxed goods). The president is markedly less concerned about what, and who, is exiting his country.

The scientific journal Nature recently published a survey in which more than 1,200 of 1,608 scientists polled—75 per cent of respondents—said they were considering leaving the US. According to physician recruiters across Canada, hundreds of American doctors, roughly double the number at this time last year, have reached out to explore relocation. And sweeping changes to how universities, museums and anything even tangentially related to DEI are funded are making crossing the border more and more appealing to academics and cultural workers.

Current and future leaders in science, medicine, academia, law, tech and the arts are choosing Toronto as their destination, drawn to its stability, diversity and freedom of discourse. For many of these expats, our city is a perfect perch from which to combat the spread of fascism. What they all share is a deep desire to work in a country that values their contributions. We’re lucky to have them.

“It started to feel a bit too much like Europe in the 1930s”: Music producer Bob Ezrin on why he moved from Nashville to Toronto

Ezrin has worked with the likes of Pink Floyd, Kiss and Alice Cooper. Here, he discusses how the US has deteriorated in the wake of Donald Trump’s second ascent to the White House

“That’s not just poor governance—it’s reckless”: Disaster management professor Jack Rozdilsky on why he left Trump’s America

The emergency preparedness expert talks gutting FEMA, the growing disregard for democratic norms and what we need most in these uncertain times

The Magic Lab: How chemist and computer scientist Alán Aspuru-Guzik brought self-driving laboratories from Harvard to Toronto

Aspuru-Guzik and his multinational team of mad scientists are combining chemistry, robotics and AI to fight climate change, streamline organ transplants and supercharge the scientific method. How did their lab end up at the University of Toronto? In a word: Trump

“When I saw how Trump was stoking fear and division, I left the US for a job at the ROM”

For 24 years, Jennifer Wild worked at the Detroit Institute of Arts. Here, she explains her decision to leave

“I want my kids to grow up in a free country”: Philosopher and professor Jason Stanley on his decision to leave the US

The author of How Fascism Works talks Trump’s working-class appeal, how to keep Canada from following in America’s footsteps and why Toronto is the best place to be right now

“Between the Capitol riot and the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, I knew I had to leave Louisiana”

A professor of media studies, Robert W. Gehl is an expert on open-source alternatives to American behemoths like X and Meta. Here, he shares his motivations for relocating to Toronto

“I worry about whether the rule of law is going to survive”: Why these lawyers packed up their lives in North Carolina and moved to Toronto

David Rudolph and Sonya Pfeiffer, civil rights and criminal defence lawyers (the former of The Staircase fame), discuss deepening political divides, inane governors and their new life up north

“Here, there’s still a sense that people are willing to listen”: Why U of T sociology professor Jerry Flores moved from Washington State to Toronto

Growing up in a low-income neighbourhood in LA, Flores experienced institutional racism and systemic injustice first-hand. Eight months after Trump was elected, he and his family headed north

“My belief in equity wasn’t something I could shut off or hide”: Professor Anne Sullivan on leaving Georgia Tech for York University

The computational arts educator shares the personal and professional hurdles that made riding out a second Trump presidency untenable

“The number of applicants from the US is larger than we have ever seen before”: Sean Cleary on why he left the Mayo Clinic to expand robotic surgery in Toronto

The hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgeon talks Canadian versus American health care, U of T’s world-class surgery department and the moment he knew he had to get out of Minnesota

“Everyone should have a voice in tech”: Machine learning researcher Colin Raffel explains his decision to move from North Carolina to Toronto

Now a professor of computer science at U of T and associate research director at the Vector Institute, Raffel discusses the importance of diversity, the grim prospect of raising kids in Trump’s America and Toronto’s role as an AI hub

“I’m grateful to be working in a country that values the arts”: Why Mark Williams left Cleveland to run the Toronto Symphony Orchestra

“I’m a six-foot-one Black gay man,” says the TSO’s CEO. “I have to be very mindful about putting myself in situations where I will have a fair shake”