No African state made the cut for the 2025 US visa waiver programme, which allows travellers from certain countries to enter the United States without a visa for up to 90 days.
This news comes amidst US President Donald Trump ramping up strict border policies and deportations, with African and other immigrants often feeling the heat. Thousands of undocumented Africans in the US are now staring down the barrel of deportation.
The move mirrors US systemic discrimination against Black people and reminds us of Trump’s alleged 2018 remark that he didn’t want people migrating into the US from ‘sh*thole’ countries in Africa.
Visa restrictions imposed on Africans not only discriminate, but make it more difficult for scientists, business people, and other professionals from Africa to attend seminars and other gatherings they require to further their practices.
But it’s a bit rich, isn’t it? Evidence has shown the US has meddled in African affairs, with shocking reports revealing that it has indirectly supported extremist groups like Boko Haram in Nigeria and Al-Shabaab in Somalia. The resulting conflict, economic despair and persecution have led many Africans to seek asylum in the US.
And let’s not forget this: The US doesn’t refund visa rejects. Considering a study from the Higher Ed Immigration Portal found that in 2023, the US denied 57 per cent of African student visa applications, these rejections may be a clever way to fund consular services!
While some might lament the hurdles Africans face in entering the US, as Pan-Africanists, we say good riddance! Those of us passionate about our homeland see this as a chance to double down on the commitment to liberating Africa. And the inability to easily travel to the US may be a hidden blessing, keeping our people from heading to a country with the highest incarceration rate in the world, where seven out of 10 of its nearly 2 million prisoners are Black, and where Black people face a disproportionate risk of police brutality and a long history of racial discrimination and violence.
Sources
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLQc2dYikyU
https://www.prb.org/resources/u-s-has-worlds-highest-incarceration-rate/
https://www.sentencingproject.org/reports/mass-incarceration-trends/
https://www.semafor.com/article/07/28/2024/us-rejects-african-students-visas-rising