Major Californian towns have seen eerie advertisements telling people not to “migrate to Texas” in response to the Uvalde school tragedy.
At the intersection of Folsom and 7th Street in San Francisco, one billboard was visible that FoxPoint Media advertising had rented out, while several were visible in Los Angeles.
The advertisement portrayed a restrained guy wearing a hoodie and sunglasses and made reference to the May school shooting in Uvalde that claimed the lives of two instructors and 19 students.
“In Uvalde, The Texas Miracle Died.” The ominous sign advised people not to relocate to Texas.
The phrase “The Texas Miracle” refers to the previous governor of the Lone Star state, Rick Perry, who was able to “boost” the state’s economy in 2008 amid the Great Recession.
In the meanwhile, the brash slogan “Don’t mess with Texas,” which originated from a 1986 anti-littering campaign, was crossed out on the billboard.
Are these folks appreciative that Uvalde occurred? Some criticised the post on social media, calling it a “disgusting use of political propaganda” that “used the tragedy to their advantage,” which infuriated the critic.
Others wanted to know who posted the threatening advertisements.
As more people leave the Golden State, the anonymously put billboards are the most recent in the competition between Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
According to US Census Bureau statistics, between 2018 and 2019, around 50,000 Californians relocated to Texas annually. During those two years, 35,000 individuals each year on average moved from Texas to California.
California is still the most populous US state, with an estimated 39,185,605 citizens as of the end of the year, placing it well ahead of Texas, which came in second with 29.5 million people.
However, after years of rapid growth that got California tantalisingly near to the 40 million milestones, the state’s population has decreased by 117,552 individuals this year, bringing it approximately back to where it was in 2016.
Since Texas has one of the lowest corporation taxes in the nation at roughly 20 percent, more businesses have joined the bandwagon to relocate there as well.
Texas is a desirable central hub for travel and communication since it is located in the heart of the nation. In compared to big US cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco, corporate rent is also cheap.
Since Governor Abbott entered office, some 250 businesses—including Tesla, Oracle, and Joe Rogan’s production company—have relocated to the Lone Star state.
As more Californians leave the state due to rising living expenses, Newsom has intensified his 2024 campaign by criticising the Republican states of Texas and Florida for their abortion and gun control legislation.
In July, Newsom attacked Abbott by placing advertisements in significant Texas newspapers with the claim that California’s child fatality rate is due to gun violence.
California can outlaw lethal weapons of war and save lives if Texas can outlaw abortion and put lives at risk. We want Governor Abbott to follow California’s example if he genuinely wants to defend the right to life, according to the advertisement.
The Democratic governor’s commercial pleading with people to relocate to the Golden State followed another in Florida.
The advertisement said, “I implore all of you residing in Florida to join the fight—or join us in California, where we still believe in freedom.”