United States Immigration Policy Under President Donald Trump and the Challenges of African Deportees 2016-2025

Abstract

Between 2016 and 2025, United States immigration policy experienced a major shift under the administration of President Donald Trump. Characterized by executive orders, increased interior enforcement, and mass deportation, these policies had disproportionate effects on immigrant communities, including Africans. While studies on US deportation have largely focused on Latino migrants, African deportees remain under-researched despite a 43% increase in removals of African nationals between 2016 and 2019 according to the Department of Homeland Security. This study examined United States immigration policy under President Donald Trump and the challenges of African deportees from 2016-2025. Anchored on Social Exclusion Theory, Cumulative Disadvantage Theory, and Transnationalism, the study adopted an Explanatory Sequential Mixed-Methods design. Quantitative data were collected from 450 African deportees across Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Somalia, and Kenya using a structured questionnaire. Qualitative data were obtained from 35 In-Depth Interviews and 5 JHSP JHSP P-ISSN 2695 2416 Focus Group Discussions. Secondary data were sourced from DHS, ICE, TRAC Immigration, IOM, and World Bank reports. Data were analyzed using SPSS v29, AMOS v28 for SEM, and NVivo 14 for thematic analysis. Findings revealed that: 1. Trump-era policies, especially EO 13768 and workplace raids, significantly increased African deportation rates β=0.438, p<0.001. 2. African deportees faced five major challenges: economic precarity, skills devaluation, legal limbo, psychosocial trauma, and social stigma. 3. 76.4% of respondents experienced more than income loss and 68.9% remained unemployed 12 months after return. 4. Household remittances declined by 37% on average, increasing poverty in origin communities. 5. Policy continuity post- 2021 sustained deportation levels. The study concludes that restrictive US immigration policy under Trump created structural and long-term challenges for African deportees with cross- border effects. It recommends bilateral reintegration agreements, skills recognition protocols, and a pan-African deportee support fund. The study contributes a "Deportee Challenge Framework" and the first large empirical data on African US deportees 2016-2025.

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