What is Passport Bros?

Passport Bros is a slang term for American men, initially Black American men, who travel abroad to date or marry foreign women they view as more traditional than U.S. women.

Where did Passport Bros come from?

The idea traces back to Jelani Cobb's 2006 Essence article 'Blame It On Rio' about African-American men taking sex vacations to Brazil.

What does Passport Bros mean?

It refers to men who use their U.S. passport to leave the country in search of a foreign partner they view as more family-oriented, often in Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, or Latin America.

How do you use Passport Bros?

The term is typically used as a self-identifier by men who post their U.S. passports on TikTok, popularized by @anthonymcdonaldsr's November 2022 video, or as a critical label used to describe or mock such men.

Is Passport Bros still popular?

As of 2025, the Passport Bros archetype was worked into HBO's 'The White Lotus' third season, showing the label still had cultural reach.

Who started the Passport Bros movement?

The philosophy traces to journalist Jelani Cobb's 2006 Essence reporting on African-American men taking sex vacations to Brazil, which he later discussed on NPR's News & Notes.

What countries do Passport Bros travel to?

Thailand became a top destination, so much so that HBO's 'The White Lotus' set its third season there with the archetype worked into the cast. Brazil is also historically important based on Jelani Cobb's 2006 Essence reporting on African-American men taking trips there.

How did work-from-home affect the Passport Bros trend?

Fox News reported the trend picked up significantly with COVID-era work-from-home flexibility, with dating coach Eddie Hernandez tying the growth to frustration with U.S. dating and easier travel.

What is the White Lotus connection to Passport Bros?

The 2025 season set in Thailand used the archetype directly, with Sam Rockwell's character Frank telling Rick he moved to Thailand because he 'always had a thing for Asian girls,' and locals in the show calling the older Western guests 'losers back home' (LBH).

How do critics view Passport Bros?

Critics tie the framing to 2000s Brazilian sex tourism, which historian Jelani Cobb described on NPR as a pattern where men were repeatedly drawn back for the psychological affirmation of being praised as Black American.

What is 'losers back home' (LBH)?

It is a spin on the Passport Bros label used in HBO's 'The White Lotus' season three by locals in Thailand to refer to the older, bald, white male guests at the resort.

Passport Bros

Q: When did Passport Bros go viral on TikTok?

The TikTok breakout came in November 2022 through a duet chain of men holding up their U.S. passports, capped by @anthonymcdonaldsr's video on November 7, 2022.

2019catchphrasesemi-active

Published August 1, 2026

Passport Bros is a slang term for American men, originally Black American men, who travel abroad in search of foreign women they view as more traditional than women back home. The idea traces back to 2000s reporting on Brazilian sex tourism, spread through YouTube travel vlogs around 2019, and broke out on TikTok in late 2022 with duet videos of men holding up their U.S. passports.

manosphere memes slang memes dating memes airport travel memes gender discourse memes

Overview

Passport Bros is a slang term for American men, originally Black American men, who travel abroad in search of foreign women they consider more traditional than U.S. women3. Commonly named destinations include Brazil, Thailand, and Colombia, and the framing draws from the broader manosphere alongside figures like Kevin Samuels, Dr. Umar Johnson, and Andrew Tate4.

Critics tie the framing back to Western sex tourism first covered in Brazil during the 2000s1. Supporters on Urban Dictionary describe themselves as men seeking family-oriented partners in places where hookup culture is less rampant6. Fox News quoted dating coach Eddie Hernandez saying many Passport Bros blame feminism and impossible U.S. dating standards for their move overseas2.

Gallery

Origin & Background

Platform

YouTube (2019 travel vlogs) / TikTok (viral spread late 2022)

Creator

Unknown

Date

2019

In the September 2006 issue of Essence, historian Jelani Cobb published an article titled 'Blame It On Rio' about African-American men taking sex vacations to Brazil1. Cobb, now dean of Columbia Journalism School and a New Yorker staff writer5, told NPR host Ed Gordon that the flow of praise these men received in Brazil was 'as much psychological as it is sexual'1.

Independent filmmaker Al Greeze followed with a 2010 trailer and 2011 documentary titled 'Frustrated,' about Black American men relocating to Brazil, and both Cobb's article and Greeze's film directly influenced the first YouTube Passport Bros creators, most notably DJP's July 3, 2019 video 'Why I Go to Brazil'4.

How It Spread

After DJP's 2019 start, the small YouTube scene grew with creators like BMT Travels (short for Black Man Travels), whose August 2019 upload 'Dominican women vs Brazilian women' and September 2019 comparison of 'Traveling brothers' to incels helped shape the early tone, with Twitter picking up the term by January 2020 and YouTuber Oshay Duke Jackson's August 2022 video contrasting Kevin Samuels' philosophy with the movement drawing over 100,000 views4.

On August 29, 2022, Urban Dictionary user Jayy5555 submitted a definition that pulled over 980 likes within six months6. The push to mass awareness came in November 2022 through a TikTok duet chain of men holding up their U.S. passports, capped by @anthonymcdonaldsr's video on November 77. From there, the term broke out of niche YouTube communities and crossed into mainstream media coverage3.

TikTok

How to Use This Meme

Passport Bros content typically takes one of a few forms: a TikTok clip of a man holding up his U.S. passport (the format popularized by @anthonymcdonaldsr's November 2022 duet7), a talking-head YouTube travel vlog shot in Brazil, Thailand, or Colombia explaining why the creator left the U.S., or a comparison video ranking women from different countries. The label is also used critically by opponents who mock the framing.

Cultural Impact

Mainstream press picked up the story in 2023 and 2024. Fox News covered the movement, quoting dating coach Eddie Hernandez, who linked its growth to frustration with feminism and to work-from-home flexibility that made moving abroad easier2. HBO's 'The White Lotus' worked the Passport Bros archetype into its 2025 season set in Thailand, with Sam Rockwell's character Frank openly telling Rick that he moved to Thailand because he 'always had a thing for Asian girls'3. In the show, local Thai staff use the label 'losers back home' (LBH) as a spin on Passport Bros, applied to the older, bald, white male guests at the resort3.

Fun Facts

Jelani Cobb, whose 2006 'Blame It On Rio' Essence article shaped the discourse, went on to become dean of Columbia Journalism School5.

The 2011 documentary 'Frustrated' by Al Greeze was based on Cobb's article and dealt with African-American men moving to Brazil1.

The Urban Dictionary entry by user Jayy5555 pulled over 980 likes and 450 dislikes within six months of its August 2022 posting6.

HBO's 'The White Lotus' worked the archetype into its 2025 Thailand season, with locals in the show coining 'losers back home' (LBH) as a spin on the label3.

Fox News linked the trend's growth to remote-work culture and men frustrated with U.S. dating standards2.