Congolese Americans () are

Americans Americans are the Citizenship of the United States, citizens and United States nationality law, nationals of the United States, United States of America.; ; Law of the United States, U.S. federal law does not equate nationality with Race (hu ...

descended from the peoples of the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

and the

Republic of the Congo The Republic of the Congo, also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo), is a country located on the western coast of Central ...

, which consist of hundreds of

ethnic group An ethnicity or ethnic group is a group of people with shared attributes, which they collectively believe to have, and long-term endogamy. Ethnicities share attributes like language, culture, common sets of ancestry, traditions, society, re ...

s. In the 2020 U.S. Census, 110,537 people reported Congolese descent, reflecting significant growth in the community. Rose Mapendo, who suffered as a result of the war, helped 2,000 refugees to emigrate into the U.S. through the organization Mapendo International.Fronteras: The changing America Desk. Congolese Immigrants Search For A Voice
Posted by Nick Blumberg in Tuesday, October 25, 201. Retrieved October 24, 2:55pm. In 2013, roughly 10,000 refugees from the DRC were living in the U.S.Refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo

History

Like other Central/West African groups in the United States, the first Congolese arrived as enslaved people in the modern-day United States as part of the

Atlantic slave trade The Atlantic slave trade or transatlantic slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of Slavery in Africa, enslaved African people to the Americas. European slave ships regularly used the triangular trade route and its Middle Pass ...

. Congolese were most likely sold in Cabinda in modern-day

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

and were then imported to places such as

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

and

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

.Africans and Their Descendants in the Americas: Restoring the Links Using Historical Documents and Databases
Retrieved October 14, 2012, to 20:20 pm. However, due to the difficulty of tracing specific ancestry through the Atlantic slave trade and the lack of records on specific geographic origins of slaves, very few descendants of enslaved Congolese today identify specifically as Congolese Americans. In the 1960s, Congolese gradually began to voluntarily migrate to the U.S. for educational reasons. However, in the 1980s, the first large wave of Congolese immigrants came to the U.S. for educational purposes. Initially, most of them decided to return home when they finished their studies in the U.S. However, many of them chose to stay in the U.S. due to the worsening political and economic situation in the DRC. The First Congo War (1996–97) in the DRC drove many Congolese to leave their families at home to seek asylum in the U.S. as war refugees. Only a few families migrated to the U.S. together. Some refugees were Tutsi who sought refuge from the

Rwandan genocide The Rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the Tutsi, occurred from 7 April to 19 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. Over a span of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Gre ...

in the DRC before arriving in the U.S.Encyclopedia of Chicago: Congolese in Chicago
Posted by Tracy Steffes. Retrieved September 4, 2012, to 2:06 pm.

Demography

The modern-day Republic of the Congo and the DRC were both colonized by

Francophone The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...

powers, the former by

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and the latter by

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. Thus, many Congolese speak French in addition to English and several

Bantu languages The Bantu languages (English: , Proto-Bantu language, Proto-Bantu: *bantʊ̀), or Ntu languages are a language family of about 600 languages of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern, East Africa, Eastern and Southeast Africa, South ...

. Immigrants from the DRC speak

Lingala Lingala (or Ngala, Lingala: ) is a Bantu languages, Bantu language spoken in the northwest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the northern half of the Republic of the Congo, in their capitals, Kinshasa and Brazzaville, and to a lesser de ...

, Swahili, Kikongo, Bembe, and Tshiluba. However, recent immigrants are less likely to speak English than the better-educated Congolese migrants before them, and thus, have more difficulty adjusting to daily living in the U.S. Still, U.S. employers do not always accept the professional expertise and education that immigrants received in the Congo. Thus, many educated Congolese have been forced to work in unskilled and low-paying jobs such as dishwashing and taxi cab driving. Most Congolese are

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

. According to the US Census Bureau in 2023, 62,547 people from the Democratic Republic of Congo and 43,066 from the Republic of Congo lived in the United States in this year. A significant number of Congolese Americans reside in the Charlotte and Raleigh areas of

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, in the

Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, officially designated Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, is the most populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Texas and the Southern United States, ...

in Texas (mainly in Arlington,

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population was 106,940. Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford local government district. Bedford was founded at a ford (crossin ...

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, Euless, Grand Prairie, Hurst, and Irving); in the

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

and Columbus areas of Ohio; and in

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

, where the Congolese community of DRC this growing due to sending refugees (although quantitatively reduced in the last years.) There is also a growing population of Congolese in

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

(with 1,379 self reporting as Congolese alone in Cumberland County as of 2020.) Additionally, most of the refugees in

Tallahassee, Florida Tallahassee ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of and the only incorporated municipality in Leon County, Florida, Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Fl ...

, are from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since 2001, many refugees from the DRC have resettled in the United States. In 2013, it was estimated that more than 10,000 refugees from the DRC live in the U.S., of which more than 3,000 arrived in the U.S. in 2010. The U.S. had hoped to resettle tens of thousands more from the DRC over the next five years. There is a growing Congolese refugee population in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

, and other cities in the state. In

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

, thousands of Congolese have settled in Louisville and other cities. In Bowling Green, Kentucky, Congolese refugees already compose a sizable proportion of the city. Texas has the highest number of immigrants from the Republic of the Congo at 6,230. Immigrants from the Republic of Congo took up the largest share of a state's population in Kentucky at 0.041%. As of 2023, the Top 10 cities with the most immigrants from the Republic of the Congo were as follows: Texas has the highest number of immigrants from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), formerly known as Zaire, at 5,580. Immigrants from the DRC took up the largest share of a state's population in Iowa at 0.12%. As of 2023, the Top 10 cities with the most immigrants from the DRC were as follows:

Organizations

Congolese Community of Chicago aims to facilitate the integration of people of Congolese descent into the American tapestry while running programs to educate others about Congolese culture. Congolese Community of North Carolina-Raleigh (COCOM-NC-Raleigh) provides educational opportunities for Congolese children and their families in North Carolina's Research Triangle. Congolese Women Association of New England provides immigration counseling, job training, ESL classes, and cultural practice workshops to Congolese women in New England. Other organizations include the Salem Gospel Ministries in the DC area, Congolese Community of Houston, and Congolese Community of Northern California.Congolese Community of Northern California

Notable people

;

* Ota Benga * Nansha Kalonji * Hakeem Kashama * Arthur Katalayi * Réjane Magloire * Emmanuel Mudiay * Dikembe Mutombo * Mary Ngwanda Georges * Joy Reid * Prince Shembo * Sandra Uwiringiyimana * Philippe Wamba ;

* Dwight Hardy * Sammus

References

External links

"Congolese Americans: Finding a Home in New England"
{{Demographics of the United States Central African diaspora in the United States Political refugees in the United States