The Trump Administrations Deportations
America is no longer welcoming to the poor and downtrodden masses (Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress)
The Trump Administration’s draconian deportation operations continue apace, despite public opposition. While media reports have focused primarily on actions against undocumented immigrants within the Hispanic and Latino communities, one demographic being impacted by the administration’s wholesale and at times inhumane operations is Africans.
The Administration is sending mixed signals regarding its policy towards Africa. On the one hand, Trump invited leaders of five West African countries to the White House in early July to discuss trade and development. This meeting, in and of itself, was a welcome sign of attention for many, given the fact that as recently as July 15, there was no senior director for Africa on the National Security Staff (NSC)
While the meeting, as narrowly focused as it was on trade and development, any sign of this administration’s actual policy was absent. What the meeting did show was Trump’s disdain for Africa and Africans; his main concern was his desire to deport people.
Unfortunately, the meeting was marred by Trump’s gaffe by complimenting the president of Liberia for speaking such ‘good English,’ apparently unaware that the official language of Liberia, a country founded in the 19th century by free Black Americans from the United States, is English. This is reminiscent of a remark he made in 2018, during his first term, when he referred to Haiti and African nations as ‘shithole countries’ during a meeting with a bipartisan group of senators at the White House.
One of the topics of discussion was the possible acceptance of non-citizen deportees from the United States. South Sudan has already accepted eight third-country deportees, and Rwanda is reportedly in talks with the Trump administration on a similar deal. On July 15, 2025, it was announced that the administration had sent five men to Eswatini. A Department of Homeland Security official described the men sent to Eswatini, none of whom were African, as convicted criminals, ‘so uniquely barbaric that their home countries refused to take them back.’ Similar remarks were made about the Asian and Latin American men deported to South Sudan. Eswatini is an absolute monarchy, noted for its suppression of free speech and political choice, and South Sudan is a poorly-governed, economically underdeveloped country where violence is rampant. With the problems these countries already face, one can only wonder how the introduction of more “barbaric” criminals, who have no family connections and who do not speak the language, will impact them. Trump’s actions show a callous disregard for both the deportees and the countries they’re being sent to.
In addition, tens of thousands of African immigrants are listed for deportation. Nationals from South Sudan (136) and Rwanda (338) were included on the list of those scheduled for deportation in February 2025. Matters are further complicated by the administration’s July 9 announcement of new visa restrictions for Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, and Nigeria, limiting nearly all non-immigrant and non-diplomatic visas to a single entry valid for only three months.
Watching the ebb and flow of deportation announcements and enforcement actions of the administration regarding Africa makes it impossible to determine with any degree of specificity just what the policies are at any given moment. As chair of the Africa Program of the Foreign Policy Institute, I have tried to explain America’s Africa policy for Americans and Africans alike. It has never been easy, but under the current administration, it has become as impossible as pushing a rope uphill. In the past, U.S. policy has been more or less benign neglect, with attention focused when there was a massive humanitarian emergency or a terrorist incident. The transactional, single-focus mindset of the current administration, with often contradictory actions and statements on an almost daily basis, has left me unable to come up with a suitable label.
Charles A. Ray spent 20 years in the U.S. Army with two tours in Vietnam. He retired as a senior US diplomat, serving 30 years in the U.S. Foreign Service, with assignments as ambassador to the Kingdom of Cambodia and the Republic of Zimbabwe, and was the first American consul general in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. He also served in senior positions with the Department of Defense and is a member of The Steady State.
Founded in 2016, The Steady State is a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(4) organization of more than 290 former senior national security professionals. Our membership includes former officials from the CIA, FBI, Department of State, Department of Defense, and Department of Homeland Security. Drawing on deep expertise across national security disciplines, including intelligence, diplomacy, military affairs, and law, we advocate for constitutional democracy, the rule of law, and the preservation of America’s national security institutions.