Escape From New York… or Trying To?
In 1981, director John Carpenter gave us a dystopian vision in the cult classic Escape from New York—a film that felt exaggerated at the time, yet oddly echoes in today’s conversations.
The movie is set in a grim future where New York City has been converted into a maximum-security prison. Manhattan is walled off, its bridges mined, its skyline no longer a symbol of ambition but of containment. Crime has overwhelmed the system, and the government’s solution is blunt: if you’re in, you’re not getting out.
Enter Snake Plissken, played by Kurt Russell—a former soldier turned criminal, tasked with an impossible mission. The President’s plane has crashed inside Manhattan, and Snake is coerced into rescuing him within 24 hours. Failure means death—literally, as explosives have been injected into his body to ensure compliance.
Snake navigates a lawless urban jungle filled with rival gangs, decaying infrastructure, and desperate survivors. The film isn’t just an action story—it’s a commentary on fear, governance, and what happens when a city becomes a symbol of abandonment rather than opportunity.
When Fiction Brushes Reality
Now, fast forward to today, and the conversation around New York City has taken a different—but still striking—turn. Policymakers have debated various ways to manage budget gaps, population shifts, and economic pressures. Among the more controversial ideas discussed in recent years is the concept of an “exit tax” or similar financial measures aimed at people leaving the city or state.
While no sweeping, universally applied “exit tax” for simply moving out has fully taken hold in the way headlines sometimes suggest, there are real financial pressures tied to leaving, including:
- State and city tax obligations that follow residency rules
- High closing costs when selling property
- Capital gains taxes
- Moving expenses that can be staggering
- Differences in cost of living that may not always favor the destination
And in broader discussions, proposals targeting high-income earners relocating have raised concerns about whether governments might try to recapture lost tax revenue from those departing.
The optics alone are powerful: a city people once fought to enter now wrestling with how—and whether—it should respond when people choose to leave.
A Personal Note
I’ll admit something—I never fully fell in love with New York City. Maybe it’s because I was raised in Boston, where history whispers instead of shouts, and the pace, while still intense, carries a different rhythm.
But even from a distance, I feel for you.
New York has always been more than a city. It’s been a proving ground, a refuge, a dream factory. When policies—even hypothetical ones—begin to feel like barriers instead of bridges, it strikes at the identity of a place built on movement, ambition, and reinvention.
You shouldn’t need a character like Snake Plissken to leave a city.
Closing Thought
Escape from New York imagined a future where leaving was nearly impossible. Today, the conversation isn’t about walls and landmines—but about economics, policy, and the subtle ways people can feel trapped or pushed.
Cities thrive when people believe they have a choice—to stay, to build, or yes, even to leave.
When that choice feels complicated, costly, or constrained, it’s worth asking: what kind of city are we becoming?
About the Author
Wayne Weiner, D.Ed., is an author, philosopher, and worldwide consultant known for his innovative coaching methods. With over forty years of leadership and organizational development experience, he has served as Director of Education at Harvard Teaching Hospital and Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. He later founded a consulting firm serving federal agencies, universities, Native American communities, international corporations, and even a White House cabinet member. For the past decade, he has worked with the National Institutes of Health as a Senior Leadership Consultant. Dr. Weiner has also written 20 novels and continues to inspire future leaders through his work.
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