There is a seemingly never-ending stream of online discourse about NYC «transplants.» A transplant is someone who moves to a city that they didn’t grow up in, and allegedly makes it worse with their tacky, trendy consumption habits. It’s essentially the 21st-century version of a yuppie. Transplant discourse is not solely a New York City thing. There are plenty of Texans complaining about Californians moving to their state, but they’re less likely to call them «transplants.» They’d probably say, «Texas is full, don’t come here.» 

I’ve found that in real life, most native New Yorkers are not opposed to all non-natives moving to their city. Some New Yorkers don’t like annoying people who are usually from Elsewhere USA, and use that annoyance and anger to create a caricature of what a transplant is and the harm they cause.  In a city where 28% of residents weren’t born in the United States, it’s clear that New York can hardly gatekeep who lives in the city. Heck, there’s a massive statue of a green lady welcoming all!