Sierra Leonean Americans
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Sierra Leonean Americans are an ethnic group of
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 ...
of full or partial
Sierra Leonean The demographics of Sierra Leone are made up of an indigenous population from 18 ethnic groups. The Temne in the north and the Mende in the south are the largest. About 60,000 are Krio, the descendants of freed slaves who returned to Sierra L ...
ancestry. This includes Sierra Leone Creoles whose ancestors were
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
Black Loyalists Black Loyalists were people of African descent who sided with Loyalist (American Revolution), Loyalists during the American Revolutionary War. In particular, the term referred to men enslaved by Patriot (American Revolution), Patriots who served ...
freed after fighting on the side of the British during the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
. Originally published by Longman & Dalhousie University Press (1976). Some African Americans trace their roots to indigenous enslaved Sierra Leoneans exported to the United States between the 18th and early 19th century. In particular, the
Gullah people The Gullah () are a subgroup of the African American ethnic group, who predominantly live in the Lowcountry region of the U.S. states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida within the coastal plain and the Sea Islands. Their ...
of partial Sierra Leonean ancestry, fled their owners and settled in parts of South Carolina, Georgia, and the
Sea Islands The Sea Islands are a chain of over a hundred tidal and barrier islands on the Atlantic Ocean coast of the Southeastern United States, between the mouths of the Santee and St. Johns rivers along South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. The la ...
, where they still retain their cultural heritage. The first wave of
Sierra Leonean The demographics of Sierra Leone are made up of an indigenous population from 18 ethnic groups. The Temne in the north and the Mende in the south are the largest. About 60,000 are Krio, the descendants of freed slaves who returned to Sierra L ...
s to the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, after the slavery period, was after the Sierra Leone Civil War in the 1990s and early 2000s. According to the
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
, there are 34,161 Sierra Leonean immigrants living in the United States.


History


Slavery

The first people from present Sierra Leone who emigrated to the United States were slaves imported in this country between the 18th and 19th centuries. The first slaves from Sierra Leone arrived to the United States are some of the
Gullah The Gullah () are a subgroup of the African Americans, African American ethnic group, who predominantly live in the South Carolina Lowcountry, Lowcountry region of the U.S. states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida within ...
ancestries, or (in
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
) Geechee, which were sent from
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
or since the Caribbean, particularly
Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...
, to serve as free labor for the cultivation of rice, whose area of cultivation was the southeast coast of the modern United States. Indeed, many slavers employed slaves from the West African coasts because their great ability to work in the rice plantations. The Sierra Leonean slaves belonged to peoples such as the
Mendes Mendes (, ''Genitive case, gen''.: ), the Greek language, Greek name of the ancient Egyptian city of Djedet, also known in ancient Egypt as Per (hieroglyph), Per-Banebdjedet ("The Domain of the Ram Lord of Djedet") and Anpet, is known today as Te ...
, Temnes, Vai, Loko, the Mandingo (also known as
Mandinka Mandinka, Mandika, Mandinkha, Mandinko, or Mandingo may refer to: Media * Mandingo (novel), ''Mandingo'' (novel), a bestselling novel published in 1957 * Mandingo (film), ''Mandingo'' (film), a 1975 film based on the eponymous 1957 novel * ''Man ...
), Sherbro and Limba peopleTransatlantic linkage: The Gullah/Geechee-Sierra Leone Connection
Retrieved December 29, 2011, to 20:51 pm.
and some of them were Muslims (
Mandinka Mandinka, Mandika, Mandinkha, Mandinko, or Mandingo may refer to: Media * Mandingo (novel), ''Mandingo'' (novel), a bestselling novel published in 1957 * Mandingo (film), ''Mandingo'' (film), a 1975 film based on the eponymous 1957 novel * ''Man ...
). Slaves from Sierra Leone made up 24% of the slaves arriving imported to these place. Most of the slaves of Sierra Leone were imported to southeast, mainly to
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 ...
(where 70% of those slaves arrived. More than 18,300 slave of modern-day Sierra Leona arrived in South Carolina, settling in places such as Saint Helena Island) and
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
(where 15% of them arrived) There were more of 3,900 slaves from this region, the majority of the slaves of the colony), followed, over long distances, mainly by
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
,
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
and
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
(those places had in total more than 11% in total of the slaves from Sierra Leone in the present U.S., having between 900 and 1,000 of those slaves depending on the American state). Many of these slaves hailed from
Bunce Island Bunce Island (also spelled "Bence," "Bense," or "Bance" at different periods) is an island in the Sierra Leone River. It is situated in Freetown Harbour, the estuary of the Rokel River and Port Loko Creek, about upriver from Sierra Leone's ca ...
in the
Sierra Leone River The Sierra Leone River is a river estuary on the Atlantic Ocean in Western Sierra Leone. It is formed by the Bankasoka River and Rokel River and is between 4 and 10 miles wide (6–16 km) and 25 miles (40 km) long. It holds the major po ...
. Moreover, between 1776 and 1785, during the
American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
, many Gullah of Sierra Leoneans origin fled from the United States and emigrated to
Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, after the abolition of slavery in this country. Subsequently, in 1787 the British helped 400 freed slaves from the United States, Nova Scotia (many of them were Gullah), and Great Britain to return to Sierra Leone, where they founded the colony
Freetown Freetown () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, e ...
in 1792. The descendants of the settlers are the
Sierra Leone Creole The Sierra Leone Creole people () are an ethnic group of Sierra Leone. The Sierra Leone Creole people are lineal descendant, descendants of freed African-American, Afro-Caribbean, and Sierra Leone Liberated African, Liberated African slaves who ...
people. https://www.persee.fr/doc/cea_0008-0055_1991_num_31_121_2116 Journal of Sierra Leone Studies, Vol. 3; Edition 1, 2014 https://www.academia.edu/40720522/A_Precis_of_Sources_relating_to_genealogical_research_on_the_Sierra_Leone_Krio_people In 1841, a group of slaves that traveled on the ship
La Amistad ''La Amistad'' (; Spanish for ''The Friendship'') was a 19th-century two-masted schooner owned by a Spaniard living in Cuba. It became renowned in July 1839 for a slave revolt by Mende captives who had been captured and sold to European slav ...
, whose destination was the island of Cuba, made an uprising against the merchants who drove the ship and seized of it. Most of the slaves were Mende people, but also had people of other tribes such as the Temne. The Amistad arrived to the American coasts and the
U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
freed them from slavery. Most of those slaves returned to Africa. Only some of them remained in the United States, acquiring the American citizenship. Slavery was finally abolished after of 1865, after the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
.


Recent immigration

They did not emigrate to the United States again until the 1970s, when a new group of Sierra Leoneans, mostly students, arrived to study at American universities. Some received "legal residence status" (or married an American), enabling them to live permanently in the United States. Many became doctors, lawyers and accountants. The number of Sierra Leoneans who emigrated to the United States grew throughout the 80's due to the majority poverty and political problems suffered by the Sierra Leonean population. Many of them were students although they also worked to help their families or sent them money if they lived in Sierra Leone and encouraged them to emigrate.Encyclopedia of Chicago: Sierra Leoneans in Chicago
Posted by Tracy Steffes. Retrieved September 4, 2012, to 00:03 pm.
In addition, although some of the Sierra Leoneans who completed their studies returned to Sierra Leone, other Sierra Leoneans decided to stay in the US and obtain legal residency status. The 1990 American Census showed that 4,627 people linked your origins with Sierra Leone, many of them American citizens. Between 1990 and 1996 another many Sierra Leoneans migrated to the US, mostly fleeing the civil war. Many of them arrived to the country with visitor, as well as with student visas. During this period, more of 7,150 Sierra Leoneans with a legal status emigrated to the United States. After 1996, many Sierra Leoneans legally emigrate to the US thanks they had a refugee status and relatives residing in the US. By 1999, about 2,500 Sierra Leoneans had emigrate to the US annually, according to The
United Nations High Commission for Refugees The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, l ...
. The recent refugees tend to have lower education than earlier migrants, who have University degrees.


Demography

Currently, 80% of African Americans who are descendants of enslavesd Africans have some ancestors that came from
Bunce Island Bunce Island (also spelled "Bence," "Bense," or "Bance" at different periods) is an island in the Sierra Leone River. It is situated in Freetown Harbour, the estuary of the Rokel River and Port Loko Creek, about upriver from Sierra Leone's ca ...
in Sierra Leone. Most Sierra Leonean immigrants reside in the
Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
-
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, metropolitan area. Other Sierra Leonean communities are settled in suburbs of
Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
, Fairfax,
Arlington Arlington most often refers to: *Arlington, Virginia **Arlington National Cemetery, a United States military cemetery *Arlington, Texas Arlington may also refer to: Places Australia *Arlington light rail station, on the Inner West Light Rail in S ...
,
Falls Church Falls Church City is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,658. Falls Church is part of both Northern Virginia and the Washington metropolitan area. As of 2020, it has ...
, and Woodbridge in
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
, and in Landover, Lanham, Cheverly, Silver Spring, and Bethesda in
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
. There are also
Sierra Leonean The demographics of Sierra Leone are made up of an indigenous population from 18 ethnic groups. The Temne in the north and the Mende in the south are the largest. About 60,000 are Krio, the descendants of freed slaves who returned to Sierra L ...
communities in the
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
and
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
metropolitan areas, and in
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
,
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
,
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
,
Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
and
Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...
. Most Sierra Leoneans are
Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
and practitioners of native cultures, but there are also many
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 ...
. Sierra Leonean Americans communicate in English, either as a first or second language, due to the British colonial history. However, Krio is the
lingua franca A lingua franca (; ; for plurals see ), also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language, auxiliary language, link language or language of wider communication (LWC), is a Natural language, language systematically used to make co ...
and primary language of communication among diverse groups of Sierra Leoneans living abroad although a few still speak tribal languages reflecting their unique heritage. Many Sierra Leonean residents in the USA work in two or three jobs to reach enough salary to help their families in their country, whilst some others have university degrees. Indeed, while some Sierra Leoneans arrived in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
to pursue university studies, some are already holders of degrees from
British universities Universities in the United Kingdom have generally been instituted by royal charter, papal bull, Act of Parliament, or an instrument of government under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 or the Higher Education and Research Act 2017. Deg ...
or from
Fourah Bay College Fourah Bay College is a public university in the neighbourhood of Mount Aureol in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Founded on 18 February 1827, it is the first western-style university built in Sub-Saharan Africa and, furthermore, the first university-le ...
in
Freetown Freetown () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Sierra Leone. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean and is located in the Western Area of the country. Freetown is Sierra Leone's major urban, economic, financial, cultural, e ...
. Many Sierra Leoneans residing in the USA incorporate their children to secret organizations of Sierra Leonean origin, which teach them the cultures own of their tribes. Sierra Leonean Americans have also been helped by many former
Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an Independent agency of the U.S. government, independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to communities in partner countries around the world. It was established in Marc ...
volunteers who worked in Sierra Leone. In the US, many Sierra Leoneans have established relationships (and have even intermarried) with people from other cultures and nationalities, especially with other African immigrants.


Gullah and Geechee people

The Gullah, or (in
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
) Geechee, are descendants of enslaved Africans that were sent from
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
or since the Caribbean, particularly
Barbados Barbados, officially the Republic of Barbados, is an island country in the Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies and the easternmost island of the Caribbean region. It lies on the boundary of the South American ...
, to serve as free labor for the cultivation of rice, whose area of cultivation was the southeast coast of the modern United States, and that still live in
Sea Islands The Sea Islands are a chain of over a hundred tidal and barrier islands on the Atlantic Ocean coast of the Southeastern United States, between the mouths of the Santee and St. Johns rivers along South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. The la ...
and the coastal areas of South Carolina and Georgia. Slaves from Sierra Leone made up 24% of the slaves arriving in this place. Many slavers employed slaves from the West African coasts because their great ability to work in the rice plantations. Indeed, most of the slaves that were imported to southeast coast of the United States came from the West African's rice-growing region, established mainly in Sierra Leone, through the
Bunce Island Bunce Island (also spelled "Bence," "Bense," or "Bance" at different periods) is an island in the Sierra Leone River. It is situated in Freetown Harbour, the estuary of the Rokel River and Port Loko Creek, about upriver from Sierra Leone's ca ...
. So although the ancestors of the Gullah come from many places on the coast of West Africa, many of the elements that are part of their material culture, food (rice) and crops (indigo) are the same as those held by Sierra Leoneans. Thus, the Gullah have the same types and capacities of textiles, fishing, foodways, folktales, vernacular architecture, music, basket making, net making, language, belief systems, pottery and woodcarving that the Sierra Leoneans. So, Dr. Hair, a British historian, said the "startling" fact that all texts in African Gullah dialect are written in languages spoken in Sierra Leone. Most African texts gathered by historian Turner are belonging to the
Mende language Mende (''Mɛnde yia'') is a major language of Sierra Leone, with some speakers in neighboring Liberia and Guinea. It is spoken by the Mende people and by other ethnic groups as a regional lingua franca in southern Sierra Leone. Mende is a tona ...
. But Dr. Cabello also said that an "unusually large proportion" of the four thousand African names and personal loans in the Gullah language come from Sierra Leone. He estimated that twenty-five percent of African names and twenty percent of African vocabulary words came from the Sierra Leonean languages, principally Mende and VaiThe Gullah Language
Posted by Joseph Opala
(one of the Gullah words of origin not Sierra leonean is the same term "Gullah", that may derive from
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 ...
). The Gullah/Geechee people speak a language based mainly on Sierra Leonean Krio, a creole deriving from English, indigenous West African languages, and other European languages. The
Gullah language Gullah (also called Gullah-English, Sea Island Creole English, and Geechee) is a creole language spoken by the Gullah people (also called "Geechees" within the community), an African American population living in coastal regions of South Car ...
also has varying degrees of influences from African languages such as Ewe,
Mandinka Mandinka, Mandika, Mandinkha, Mandinko, or Mandingo may refer to: Media * Mandingo (novel), ''Mandingo'' (novel), a bestselling novel published in 1957 * Mandingo (film), ''Mandingo'' (film), a 1975 film based on the eponymous 1957 novel * ''Man ...
,
Igbo Igbo may refer to: * Igbo people, an ethnic group of Nigeria * Igbo language, their language * anything related to Igboland, a cultural region in Nigeria See also * Ibo (disambiguation) * Igbo mythology * Igbo music * Igbo art * * Igbo-Ukwu, a t ...
,
Twi Twi (; ) is the common name of the Akan literary language of Asante and Akuapem. Effectively, it is a synonym for 'Akan' that is not used by the Fante people. It is not a linguistic grouping, but more of a common name used by inland Akans as ...
, Yoruba, and Mende.


Organizations

Although Sierra Leoneans in United States belong to a variety of ethnic and religious groups have been created organizations to help Sierra Leonean community entire. So, the Chicagoland Association of Sierra Leoneans, formed in 1996, is a nonprofit organization to unite Sierra Leoneans in a community, socialize newcomers, and help to Sierra Leoneans living in Chicago and abroad. Also in 1975 it created one organization named Tegloma ("let's progress" in Mende) in Washington DC, the largest nonprofit, nonpolitical Sierra Leonean organization in the world, and it help Sierra Leoneans in te world and promoting Mende culture, the culture of the second largest ethnic group in Sierra Leone. There is an organization created in New York on behalf of health care providers that represent nursing. In 2008 the Sierra Leone Nurses Association (SLNA) was started in New York, in honor of the original SLNA started originally in Sierra Leone in 1961. Following the first chapter in the USA started in 2007 in California. And worldwide chapters since. There is a union organization called Union of Sierra Leone organizations in New York (USLO) in 2010.


Notable people

*
Franklyn Ajaye Franklyn Ajaye (born May 13, 1949) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. He released a series of comedy albums starting in 1973 and has acted in film and television shows from the 1970s through the present, including as a primary ...
* Aliyah Bah * Apha Saidu Bangura * Shaka Bangura *
Ishmael Beah Ishmael Beah (born 23 November 1980)UNICEF''Youth leadership profiles'', unicef.org; retrieved 15 February 2007. is a Sierra Leonean author and human rights activist who rose to fame with his acclaimed memoir, ''A Long Way Gone''. His novel ''Rad ...
* Namina Forna * Sallieu Bundu *
Joseph Cinqué Sengbe Pieh (), also known as Joseph Cinqué or Cinquez and sometimes referred to mononymously as Cinqué, was a West African man of the Mende people who led a revolt of many Africans on the Spanish slave ship '' La Amistad'' in July 1839. After ...
*
Will Claye Will Claye (born June 13, 1991) is an American track and field athlete of Sierra Leonean descent who competes in the long jump and triple jump. He won a bronze medal in 2011 World Championships in Athletics and the gold medals at the 2012 IAAF W ...
* Sarah Culberson *
Michaela DePrince Michaela Mabinty DePrince (born Mabinty Bangura; January 6, 1995 – September 10, 2024) was a Sierra Leonean–American ballet dancer who danced with the Boston Ballet, the Dance Theatre of Harlem, and the Dutch National Ballet. DePrince rose ...
* Delphine Fawundu *
Bill Hamid Abdul Bilal "Bill" Hamid ( ; born November 25, 1990) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a goalkeeper for USL Championship club Miami FC. Born in Annandale, Virginia, Hamid was the first D.C. United Academy player to sign fo ...
* Nikyatu Jusu * Leeroy Wilfred Kabs-Kanu * Abdul Kallon * Hafsatu Kamara *
Kei Kamara Kei Ansu Kamara (; born 1 September 1984) is a Sierra Leonean professional footballer who plays as a striker for FC Cincinnati. He is one of 13 players to have scored 100 goals in MLS history, achieving the landmark in 300 appearances. He is ...
* Memsor Kamarake * Augustine Kposowa *
Michael Lahoud Michael Lahoud (born September 15, 1986) is a Sierra Leonean former footballer. He is a broadcaster for CBS Sports Golazo Network, and a former broadcaster for Austin FC. Club career College Born in Freetown, Lahoud moved from his country to A ...
*
Adetokumboh M'Cormack Frederick Adetokumboh M'Cormack (born February 27, 1982), sometimes credited as Ade McCormack, Frederick McCormack, or Adetokumoh McCormack, is a Sierra Leonean-born American actor, known for his roles in the television series '' Lost'' and ''Hero ...
* Victor Mansaray *
Sahr Ngaujah Michael Sahr Ngaujah (born September 7, 1976) is an American theater actor and director. Not long after his parents arrival from Sierra Leone via UK, Sahr was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Within five years his family relocated to Atlanta. He spen ...
*
Mohamed Sanu Mohamed Sanu Sr. (born August 22, 1989) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights football, Ru ...
*
Ansu Sesay Ansu Martin Sesay Jr. (born July 29, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. High school and college career Sesay attended Willowridge High School in Houston, Texas. He led his team to the school's first state title in baske ...
* Israel Sesay * Jacob Stroyer * Jeneba Tarmoh * Abdul Thompson Conteh *
Frances Tiafoe Frances Tiafoe Jr. ( ; born January 20, 1998) is an American professional tennis player. He reached his career high at world No. 10 in singles on June 19, 2023, becoming the first Sierra Leonean American man to be ranked in the top 10 by the ...
* Nate Tongovula *
Thomas DeSaille Tucker Thomas DeSaille Tucker or Thomas DeSaliere Tucker (July 21, 1844 – 1903) was an African-born lawyer, educator, and missionary. He was the first president of the State Normal College for Colored Students, which eventually became Florida Agricu ...
* Desiree Venn Frederic * Abiodun Williams *
Gibril Wilson Gibril Donald Wilson (born 12 November 1981) is an American former professional football safety in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the New York Giants in the fifth round of the 2004 NFL draft. He played college football at ...
* Tejan Koroma


See also

* Sierra Leone – United States relations *
Sierra Leone Creole people The Sierra Leone Creole people () are an ethnic group of Sierra Leone. The Sierra Leone Creole people are descendants of freed African-American, Afro-Caribbean, and Liberated African slaves who settled in the Western Area of Sierra Leone be ...
* Sierra Leoneans in the United Kingdom


References


External links


"The Gullah: Rice, Slavery, and the Sierra Leone - American Connection" by Joseph A. Opala, United States Information Service, Freetown, 1987

Genetic Genealogy

Amistads

El conflicto in Sierr Leona desde 1991
(in Spanish: The conflict in Sierra Leone since 1991).

{{Demographics of the United States West African diaspora in the United States