Juneteenth is recognized as the end of slavery in the United States. It is a day to commemorate the freedoms of African Americans, celebrate Black culture, honor Black ancestry, and acknowledge the sacrifices and contributions Black people have made to this country. Juneteenth also reminds us that freedom was delayed for far too many—and that full freedom is still out of reach for many across the African diaspora, including those facing racial injustice in the immigration system.
Like African Americans, Afro-Caribbean and Afro-Latino people share a history of enslavement at the hands of European colonizers through the transatlantic slave trade. Millions were stolen from their homes in Africa and forced into labor across the United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America. Countries such as Haiti, Saint Lucia, Jamaica, Barbados, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico all carry the legacy of this violent history—one that continues to shape migration, inequality, and injustice today.
Take Haiti, for example. Haiti fought for its freedoms, gained independence and ended slavery through a successful slave revolt, the Haitian Revolution, which resulted in the Haitian Declaration of Independence in 1804. Although Haiti won their freedom, Haitians experienced persistent economic hardship mostly due to reparations they were forced to pay France following the Haitian Revolution. This was further undermined by nearly 20 years of US occupation, according to a 2022 investigation by The New York Times. These circumstances crippled Haiti’s economy and had devastating consequences within its public hospitals, education system, water supply and sanitation structure, to say the least. Several African countries share similar stories. In the Congo, for example, Belgium brutally enslaved millions of Congolese people while forcing them to extract rubber. Like in Haiti, these colonial histories left deep economic and political damage.
Today—many people from African countries seek refuge in the US, fleeing political violence, oppression, and instability rooted in the long shadow of colonization.
For the African diaspora, for Black immigrants, the history of slavery followed by centuries of oppression is long and ongoing. Black immigrants are too often left out of the immigration conversation—despite being disproportionately targeted by law enforcement — detained in higher numbers—abused in prisons and detention centers.
We must recognize the racism baked into immigration policy. Black immigrants are more likely to be detained, denied asylum, and deported—and—Black immigrants are being targeted by national travel bans. Their pain is often invisible—erased by a system that treats them as less worthy of protection.