African immigration to Latin America

African immigrants to Latin America include citizens and residents of countries in Latin America who were born in, or with recent ancestors from Africa. This excludes descendants of people who were forcibly transported to the Americas through the Atlantic slave trade.

History

During the Portuguese Colonial War and Angolan and Mozambican Civil Wars, a large number of Angolans and Mozambicans (including white Angolans and Mozambicans of Portuguese descent) fled to Brazil (also a former Portuguese colony, as Portugal was also a major destination for refugees) 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.^[1]

By country

• Argentina - 3000 African immigrants
• Brazil - at least 3000-4000 African immigrants (including 2000 immigrants from Nigeria)
• Puerto Rico - 2,467^[2]

References