Surviving In America: Stories Of Nigerians

He picked me up from Logan International Airport, Boston, where I had gone to attend an African conference at Harvard earlier in the year. His faint but visible tribal marks prompted me to ask him of his nationality. I had concluded that he was one of us, but again, I've been wrong before, many times before. But when he hesitated, I knew at once that he was a Nigerian, for only Nigerians hesitate to respond when asked where they are from. Some would respond to this question with - "I am from West Africa", as if that were a country. Those of us who know that the region consists of more than ten countries would ask for a little more specificity. Only those Nigerians who are secure about their Nigeria-ness, say without hesitation, "I am from Nigeria", when asked where they are from.

Without an answer from him, I proceeded to ask what state in Nigeria he was from. He must have thought I had special powers, but no, it was nothing but instincts and many years of dealing with my people. He indicated that he had been in Boston for three years and had been driving cab for that long. He stated with a confident aura that he was an engineering graduate from University of Ife, "Great Ife", as he called it. He sounded very sharp and intelligent. His spoken English, which was capable of making the Queen herself turn green with envy, was crisp, alluring and impeccable, not the type one would expect from typical career cab drivers.

For the duration of the ride to Harvard, he convinced me of his articulate deposition and enduring qualities as a fine gentleman of repute. He indicated that he worked for construction giant Julius Berger in a management position while he was in Nigeria. In the midst of our casual conversation, it occurred to me that he must be bearing his cross in America as a new immigrant, a cross that most Nigerian immigrants bear once they arrive these shores. For some, it takes a few months to get their bearing and for others, many years and decades. The most critical issue, as in the case above, was that he was making an honest living and not involved (at least from the impression I got) in a life of crime like some of his fellow countrymen.

His story is very similar to those of many Nigerians who came to these shores with utopian ideas only to find otherwise. While they were in Nigeria, they thought that Nigerians in America who refused to send money home were simply wicked and uncaring. They always accused those Nigerians of being stingy and oblivious to the sufferings of their siblings, relatives and parents in Nigeria. But upon arriving in America, they soon come to discover that life is not all that easy. I know of many in my community who were established professionals in Nigeria only to start over in America all in search of Eldorado. The stories are endless; the experiences in some cases are chilling and others inspiring.

Surviving in America - Stories of Nigerians -

A few years ago, a family of five relocated to America from Nigeria. The husband was a Bio-Chemist from the University of Ibadan and the wife was a full professor of medicine. For the first three years, she remained home while the husband worked at a research lab at one of the universities in the area. After many months of staying at home, she became so frustrated that at some point, she contemplated returning to Nigeria as she was fed up with life in America. I cannot remember how many times she told us to pray for her on this matter.

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This feeling was further compounded with the knowledge that she couldn't practice her profession without taking a litany of exams. She dreaded returning to the status of a common resident doctor. But there was no way around it; the American medical system is not all that friendly to foreign trained doctors. Dare4more..