Ethiopian immigrants
Ethiopian immigrants are individuals who have moved from Ethiopia to other countries, particularly the United States, often seeking refuge from political instability, famine, and drought. After the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act and especially following the Refugee Act of 1980, Ethiopians became the third-largest group of African immigrants in the U.S. Many migrated after a repressive regime took power in Ethiopia in 1974, leading to significant emigration. These immigrants generally arrived with a basic command of English and tended to settle in various neighborhoods rather than forming concentrated ethnic enclaves, which presented challenges in maintaining cultural ties.
The Ethiopian American community is religiously diverse, primarily comprising Coptic Christians and Muslims, with places of worship serving as essential support centers. As of 2022, over 356,000 individuals in the U.S. were either born in Ethiopia or have Ethiopian heritage. The community is heavily concentrated in the Washington, D.C. area, with notable populations in California, Texas, Minnesota, and New York. Recent civil unrest in Ethiopia has prompted support initiatives from the diaspora, including a 2023 peace conference aimed at fostering dialogue among various Ethiopian ethnic groups in the U.S. Despite the challenges, there is a growing commitment within the community to seek solutions for ongoing issues in their homeland.
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Ethiopian immigrants
SIGNIFICANCE: After the passage of the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act, Ethiopians became the third-largest national group of African immigrants to immigrate to the United States. Most arrived in the United States after Congress passed the Refugee Act of 1980.
Ethiopia and its people have long held special meaning in America. Once known as Abyssinia, Ethiopia stood for Black pride and Black independence as far back as the 1760s. Already possessing strong biblical associations, the name “Ethiopia” became an iconic symbol of African independence throughout Europe’s twentieth century colonization of Africa. Some educated enslaved African Americans—such as poets Phillis Wheatley and Jupiter Hammon—occasionally identified themselves as “Ethiopians” during the era of the American Revolution. The tendency of Black intellectuals to describe themselves as “Ethiopians” stems from the European custom—derived from biblical usage—of applying “Ethiopian” to all peoples from the African interior. This usagewhich dates back to the ancient Greekscan make it difficult to separate immigrants from the actual Northeast African nation of Ethiopia from the masses of African Americans.
The first Ethiopian immigrants to reach North America likely arrived as enslaved people sometime during the seventeenth century. However, the bulk of voluntary immigrants to the United States came after 1974—when a repressive regime toppled the ancient monarchy and took control of the Ethiopian government. The ensuing exodus from Ethiopia, a landlocked nation on the northeastern Horn of Africa, resulted from political turmoil as well as famine and drought. Many refugees fled initially to settlement camps in the neighboring Sudan before moving on to the United States. Impoverished, Sudan offered few economic opportunities, while the United States held out the hope of a prosperous future. Until Somalis surpassed them in 1994, Ethiopians were the largest group of Africans to immigrate under the provisions of the Refugee Act of 1980.
Ethiopian immigrants to the United States have differed from many other immigrant ethnic groups in that they typically arrived with a basic command of British English and tended to settle in disparate neighborhoods instead of gathering in ethnic enclaves. The lack of cohesive immigrant communities complicated their efforts to maintain language and cultural ties to their homelandmany were also exposed to the color line concept of racism for the first time in the United States.
Most Ethiopian immigrants are Coptic Christians and Muslimstheir religions have served as sources of comfort in the United Stateswith churches and mosques serving as community centers, health centers, and social services providers. During the early twenty-first century, the population of Ethiopia was almost evenly divided between Christians and Muslimsa split reflected among the immigrants to America. Ethiopia has also long had a significant Jewish population, but most of its Jews emigrated to Israel—the bulk of other refugees fled to the United States. Ethiopians in America have subsequently established the Ethiopian Orthodox churches as well as the Bilal Ethiopian mosques.
As of 2022, there were over 356,000 people in the United States who were immigrants born in Ethiopia or who were born in the United States to at least one parent born in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian American population heavily concentrated in the Washington, DC, areawith smaller populations in California, Texas, Minnesota, and New York. Due to the outbreak of civil war in Ethiopia in late 2022, the United States Department of Homeland Security announced all documented and undocumented Ethiopian immigrants were eligible to apply for temporary protected statusshielding them from potential deportation.
In the mid-2020s, internal issues continued to plague the Ethiopian populace inside its borders. Much of this stemmed from tensions within its different demographic groups, combined with an unstable security environment. This prompted calls for assistance from outside Ethiopian populations dispersed globally, including its community in the United States. Despite being located outside of the country, Ethiopian expatriates still exhibited considerable influence with inside groups, especially considering the $4 billion in remittances transferred annually to the country.
In July 2023, an Ethiopian Diaspora Peace Conference was held in San Diego, California for this purpose. This effort drew high-level participation, including Ambassador Mike Hammerthe US Special Envoy for the Horn of Africaand Democractic Congresswoman Sara Jacobsthe Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa. The effectiveness of the event was limited as the different Ethiopian ethnic groups that participated exhibited much of the same divisiveness and mistrust as their counterparts inside of Ethiopia.
Some participants noted cause for cautious optimism. The willingness for the diverse groupsincluding the American Ethiopian Public Affairs Committee (AEPAC)and representatives of the Amhara, Oromo, Somali, and Tigray communities, to meet showed at least a desire for conflict resolution. The effort was also seen as a first step toward establishing dialogue.
Bibliography
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