‘On the ship there were more people fleeing like me,’ diasporic itineraries from West Africa in Latin America

Abstract

Drawn upon ethnographical interviews, this essay is a brief case study on the contemporary West African transnational human mobility flows toward Mexico's northern border. First, the article presents a general panorama on one determining rationale: institutionalized sociopolitical violence. After, the text reflects on the main features of the Latin American route: its inconsistencies and ambiguities. From a diasporic perspective, the paper emphasizes the transnational networks and relations enabling these transatlantic-intercontinental itineraries despite pervasive global border securitization regimes.

Keywords:
Nigerian diaspora; border security; asylum seekers