African immigration to Latin America

History

During the Portuguese Colonial War and Angolan and Mozambican Civil Wars, some Angolans and Mozambicans fled to Brazil and became citizens.

After the end of both wars, most migration across the Atlantic to Latin America was from West Africa, often due to political and socioeconomic instability, and a trend toward the tightening of border security in the European Union in the 1990s and first decade of the 21st century. The process of settlement and citizenship acquisition, however, has been eased for these immigrants due to the presence of pre-existing Black diaspora populations in such countries as Brazil, which has minimized local trends towards xenophobia or colorism.

During the latter half of the 2010s and the early 2020s, a transit migration phenomenon from Africa to Latin America has been documented, with the intent of reaching the United States or Canada, prompted by violent and precarious conditions in their countries of origin. Recent migratory flows typically commence with flights to Brazil or Ecuador. Subsequently, on their northward journey, migrants traverse the Darién Gap, a tropical forest situated on the border between Colombia and Panama, which constitutes the most perilous segment of their journey.{{cite book

In recent years, it has been estimated by the United Nations University Center for Policy Research (UNU) that African immigration to Latin America has drastically increased in the past decade. The UNU presents an 8,000% increase in African asylum seekers from 2020 to 2024, which can indicate a greater number of immigrants in total.

By country

Brazil

• Brazil - 3000-4000 African immigrants (including 2000 immigrants from Nigeria South Africa)

Background

In the period between the late 19th century and the early 20th century, Brazilian immigration policy became restrictive of migration by populations from Africa in an effort to shift the population's racial demographic from being diverse to a white majority one. These policies worked by encouraging migration of people of European descent and making it difficult for people of African descent to enter the country. This same stance was imposed on Asians. These policies differed sharply from policies in the United States that enforced segregation and racial inequality. Brazil's policies were rooted in its history of interracial blending and relationships between the native people of Brazil, Europeans, and Africans.

Sociodemographic Data

In a study published in SciELO Brazil done by professors Maria Cecília Leite de Moraes, Linda Concita Nunes Araújo, and Climene Laura de Camargo in São Paulo, 33 female African immigrants, mostly from Angola, were surveyed and it was found that the most common reasons for their emigration from their home countries were Economic issues (21.3%) and War (15.2%). Of these 33 women, 45% report feeling discriminated against after immigrating to Brazil despite the increase in immigration.

References

References

1. Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Africans and Asians attracted to Latin America as a migration route". UNHCR.
2. (2020). "Migrants and Refugees from Ghana and Haiti in Southern Brazil: Familial Constellations and Processes of Escape". Göttingen University Press.
3. "More African Immigrants Finding a Home in Latin America {{!}} YaleGlobal Online".
4. Andres, Luis. (2009-11-15). "African immigrants drift toward Latin America". [[Reuters]].
5. Mercadal, Trudy. (2021). "African Migrants and the American Dream: So close and yet so far". Revista nuestrAmérica.
6. Navarro Alvarado, Guillermo Antonio. (2022). "Flujos migratorios africanos en Costa Rica (2014-2020)". Estudios Sociológicos de el Colegio de México.
7. Miranda, Bruno. (2023). "Migración africana en situación de espera: nuevo alcance y dimensión de la contención migratoria en México". Revista Pueblos y Fronteras Digital.
8. Odgers-Ortiz, Olga. (2024). "La era del atrapamiento migratorio: la migración africana hacia la frontera norte de México". Cuadernos Intercambio sobre Centroamérica y el Caribe.
9. "A Brighter Future Across the Atlantic?".
10. Lauderbaugh, George. [http://0-search.credoreference.com.dewey2.library.denison.edu/content/entry/abccliow/migration_to_latin_america_1800_1914/0?institutionId=4607 "Migration to Latin America, 1800–1914"]. World History Encyclopedia, [[Alfred J. Andrea]], ABC-CLIO, 1st edition, 2011. Credo Reference, . Accessed 25 Oct 2017.
11. (2023). "Black immigrants in São Paulo-Brazil: sociodemographic profile, reason for coming, embracement, and health". Revista da Escola de Enfermagem da USP.