A wave of attention surged around a TikTok account known as “Nope Brigade” after its creator, identified as a U.S.-based academic, announced a dramatic relocation. Fleeing Los Angeles, she sought refuge in Vancouver, Canada, driven by a profound fear of a potential second Trump administration.
Prior to her departure, the PhD candidate, whose research focuses on the far right and Christian nationalism, had voiced increasingly urgent concerns online. She drew stark parallels between Trump’s rhetoric regarding immigration and the precursors to historical genocides, fueling her decision to leave should he regain office.
Arriving in British Columbia on a visitor visa, she publicly declared herself a scholar in exile, a refugee from the perceived dangers south of the border. However, this new life quickly presented unforeseen challenges, as she and her partner found themselves legally unable to work and reliant on dwindling savings.
The couple had hoped to establish a foothold in the Vancouver area, drawn by proximity to West Coast family and the companionship of their pets. They were quickly confronted with a harsh reality: Vancouver’s housing crisis far exceeded even the difficulties they’d experienced in Los Angeles.
“The housing crisis here is worse than in the United States,” she revealed in a widely circulated TikTok, lamenting rents that surpassed anything she’d encountered during six years in California. Adding to their predicament, their visitor status barred them from accessing Canada’s public healthcare system or other social safety nets.
Desperate, she issued a direct appeal to Canadians in the Vancouver and Vancouver Island regions, requesting a one- or two-bedroom rental offered either for free or at a significantly reduced rate. The plea, shared alongside details of her situation – including the presence of a cat and a dog – rapidly gained traction.
The response, however, was overwhelmingly negative. Online comments beneath reposts of the video were laced with mockery and resentment. One American user bluntly stated a desire for her to remain in Canada, while a Canadian respondent echoed the sentiment, expressing an unwillingness to welcome her.
Across various forums and comment sections, critics leveled accusations of entitlement and a lack of foresight. She was derisively labeled and accused of seeking to impose the financial burden of her self-imposed exile onto strangers in an already expensive housing market.
