Go back to where you came from

“Go back to where you came from” is a xenophobic and racist insult frequently used across various nations, predominantly aimed at individuals who are immigrants or perceived as such.

Within the modern United States, this phrase is commonly directed at Asian and Hispanic Americans, but it has also been targeted at African, Arab, Jewish, and Slavic American populations. Even Indigenous Americans have been subjected to this slur. A related version, “Go back to your country,” was notably propagated by the Ku Klux Klan. Initially, it was employed by White Anglo-Saxon Protestants against various European immigrant groups such as Irish, Italians, Poles, and Jews, and its usage has extended beyond the U.S. borders.

The phrase became particularly prominent during both World War I and World War II when German Americans were viewed with suspicion and often faced discrimination and hostility. It frequently rests on incorrect assumptions about a person's background; for instance, individuals identified as Hispanic and Latino Americans may be told to "Go back to Mexico" regardless of their actual nationality. Implicit in this statement is the notion that the individual "does not belong," while the speaker claims the status of a "true" American in contrast to the target.

In professional settings within the United States, such expressions are recognized as discriminatory. Federal authorities and judicial bodies consider their usage as evidence of workplace discrimination in cases reviewed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which enforces anti-discrimination statutes related to gender, sex, national origin, and age. EEOC publications explicitly cite remarks like "Go back to where you came from," alongside ethnic insults or accent mockery, as examples of unlawful harassment grounded in national origin.

Background

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a federal entity tasked with enforcing laws designed to prevent workplace discrimination based on factors such as gender, sex, national origin, or age. It was founded pursuant to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 during the height of the U.S. Civil Rights movement.

According to EEOC guidelines, "harassment based on national origin" constitutes illegal conduct within employment environments. This includes statements like "Go back to where you came from" when such language contributes to a hostile or intimidating workplace atmosphere, hampers job performance, or limits employment opportunities. Other forbidden actions encompass ethnic slurs, taunts, and mocking accents.

A report published in July 2019 by CNN confirmed that the EEOC uses expressions such as "Go back to where you came from" as proof in cases alleging workplace discrimination.

Examples

A case reported in August 2003 by the Houston Chronicle involved an East Indian Muslim automobile salesperson employed at a Texas dealership starting in 2001. Following the events of 9/11, he encountered persistent derogatory remarks including "go back where you came from." After his termination in 2002, he filed a complaint with the EEOC. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled in favor of the EEOC, recognizing that such language demonstrated a hostile work environment motivated by national origin and religious discrimination. By 2003, backlash after 9/11 had resulted in over 943 discrimination complaints filed with the EEOC and more than 115 lawsuits initiated.

On July 14, 2019, former President Donald Trump posted a tweet using this phrase directed at four American congresswomen of color, urging them to "go back and help fix" their countries of origin despite three being born in the United States. This message ignited controversy due to Trump's history of racially charged remarks. Legal analyst Laura Coates from CNN noted that although publicly racist, the statement likely does not breach EEOC regulations since those apply solely within workplace contexts and members of Congress are not employees under the President. In reaction, The New York Times gathered around 16,000 reader submissions recounting experiences of being told to "go back."

Europe

Various studies on racism in Europe document the expression's prevalence across multiple nations. In 2009, a nurse at Södertälje Hospital in Sweden faced dismissal after admitting to verbally abusing immigrant patients with remarks such as "go back to Arabia."

In 2008, Greenlanders abandoned Gellerupparken following prolonged racist harassment from Arab and Somali inhabitants, which included slogans like "Fuck home to Greenland, this is our Gellerup" and attacks involving fireworks.

Instances of ethnic verbal abuse in Italy include a 2018 assault on a 19-year-old Senegalese asylum seeker employed as a waiter in Palermo. Three Sicilian men attacked him while shouting racial slurs such as "Go back to your country, dirty nigger." Monsignor Michele Pennisi, Archbishop of Monreale, publicly denounced the incident as contrary to Christian principles.

On 28 January 2020, André Ventura, leader of Portugal's Chega, ignited debate by proposing that black Assembly member Joacine Katar Moreira—born in Guinea-Bissau and an advocate for repatriating colonial-era artifacts—should be "sent back to her country of origin," drawing widespread criticism.

Africa

During the 2015 xenophobic riots in South Africa, immigrants—including those from other African nations—were scapegoated for the country's elevated unemployment rates. According to the Los Angeles Times, migrants from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and various African countries faced accusations of "stealing jobs and undercutting small businesses" owned by South Africans. A comparable wave of xenophobic violence occurred in 2008, resulting in 62 fatalities.

Asia

In Malaysia, politicians of Chinese heritage, particularly from the Democratic Action Party (DAP), have been targeted with offensive remarks like "balik Cina" (return to China) by fellow parliamentarians.

Oceania

In 2015, during a parliamentary session in New Zealand, Ron Mark of New Zealand First told National MP Melissa Lee to "go back to Korea." Later, in September 2022, One Nation Senator Pauline Hanson posted on Twitter that Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi should "piss off back to Pakistan," following Faruqi's critical comments regarding Elizabeth II after her passing.

Israel/Palestine conflict

The chant "Jews/Israelis go back to Europe/Poland" has been prominently heard at anti-Israel demonstrations during the Gaza conflict and occasionally in earlier events. Jo-Ann Mort of The Guardian pointed out the irony that most Israeli Jews are native-born Israelis, with Mizrahi Jews—originating from African and Middle Eastern backgrounds—outnumbering Ashkenazi Jews of European descent. Mort and Seth Greenland from the LA Times further note that many European Jews relocated to Israel escaping severe persecution in Europe. Rusi Jaspal contends these remarks seek to negate the historical Jewish ties to Israel.

See also

• Pendatang asing – Malay phrase meaning "foreign visitor," often used derogatorily toward non-Bumiputera Malays.
• Perpetual foreigner – derogatory label for individuals not regarded as citizens despite being born in the country, commonly affecting Asian Americans.
• Remigration – a concept within far-right ideology advocating for the forced repatriation of immigrants to their ethnic homelands.
• Rootless cosmopolitan – antisemitic term used during Soviet times.