Diaspora Voices Push Back on Former Senator's Call to Return Home: "Come Back? For What?"
What began as a simple Facebook post from former Senator Nellie Rivera-O’Reilly quickly turned into a digital town hall brimming with resistance, emotion, and realism from Virgin Islanders living abroad. O’Reilly’s post, published on Monday, read: “Virgin Islanders living abroad please come back home. We need you. We can do this.” While intended as a call to unity and renewal, the post provoked a stark reckoning with the reasons many left—and why so few feel ready to return.
2025-05-14 17:43:52 - VI News Staff
Comment threads on public shares of the post revealed strong sentiment: nearly 70 percent of over 300 responses rejected the idea outright, while another 22 percent expressed conditional openness, dependent on significant improvements. For many, the call was not just impractical but offensive, as it failed to acknowledge the deep economic, social, and structural challenges that led to their departure. There were hundreds of comments on shares of the post as well.
A chorus of discontent emerged:
“Reason? The governor and the government,” wrote Anastacio Cariño III.
“Nellie knew this was tone-deaf… Foot-in-mouth about to be everyone’s thing this election cycle,” added Saldaña Reed.
“We didn’t leave because we stopped loving home. We left because it stopped loving us back,” said C’Mone Chantalle in a status that was widely shared.
Their frustration spotlighted the disconnect between political optimism and on-the-ground reality: sky-high utility rates, inadequate healthcare, underpaid jobs, and widespread disillusionment with governance.
The high cost of living is a major deterrent. With electricity hovering around 42.65¢ per kilowatt-hour—almost double the U.S. average—and groceries and rent inflated by import costs, life in the Virgin Islands is financially grueling. Job prospects, particularly for educated professionals, remain slim. Marketing specialist Karly Alexander, who returned home with a master’s degree, shared that despite her qualifications, she was overlooked for meaningful roles and ultimately left again.