Leah’s Piece #3: Black Immigrants & Invisibility
Layla Ahmed was born in the U.S. and grew up in Nashville, while her parents emigrated from Somalia. Photo Credit: Karla MacIntyre for NPR
“Black immigrants all over the country have been referred to as ‘invisible immigrants.’ Their numbers throughout the United States are growing significantly — today, 20% of all Black Americans are either immigrants or the children of immigrants. But they are rarely centered in national conversations around immigration policy.”
“Layla Ahmed is a political organizer and recent college graduate who grew up in Nashville; her family emigrated from Somalia. She says she enjoys asking people what they know about Somali culture but is disheartened, time and again, to hear people's answers. Pirates, they usually say. ‘And maybe hunger. War. Terrorism.’”