What to Expect from America Now

I wasn't sure what to expect on this trip and thought about cancelling it several times. America doesn't feel like the place it used to be. This change is not just for me but also for many decent US citizens who have seen their country change in a strange way over the past few months.

Journalists often believe the world would end without them. My old journalism teacher joked that even if the world ended, reporters would still be there telling people in paradise what is happening on the other side. This idea can be crazy. It keeps reporters chasing bad news, thinking that bad news makes good stories. Taking a break can feel guilty and rest seems like a luxury.

After turning 60, I decided it was crazy to keep this up. At least once a year, I want to remember what normal life feels like. I took a break from writing for three weeks and chose to go to America at a time when many people ask what I’m looking for in a country where the president doesn’t want visitors from some parts of the world. It feels easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than to visit America these days.

If I needed a fresh visa now, I probably wouldn’t get it. This has nothing to do with my travel record to the US or anywhere else. Even getting an interview date would take months, maybe even a year.

Since January, Nigeria has been on the US partial travel restriction list along with 13 other African countries. Eleven countries, including Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Niger, and Somalia, are on the full travel ban list.

I have been to over 40 countries for work and have never overstayed or faced trouble. America used to be my favorite holiday spot. My friends Buddy and Paula Baker, who are now in their 70s, showed me the warm American spirit of kindness and generosity.

America’s creativity and diversity remind me of Nigeria. I also enjoy the busy highways. Renting and driving a car whenever I visit makes me overlook the fact that many Americans seem unaware of other parts of the world and the dangers of loose gun laws.

I was uncertain about what to expect, especially with my strong views on some of Trump’s actions, for which I don’t apologize. Is America still welcoming to visitors, friendly to strangers, and generous in spirit? Or has the country become mean, fearful of outsiders, and very narrow-minded?

About the visa issue. I’m lucky to have a five-year visa issued three years ago, before the current president changed everything. Now, non-immigrant visas are single-entry, three months, and the vetting process could even ask for your grandmother’s wisdom tooth.

From June, a new plan might reduce US consular posts in Nigeria and other African countries. This could raise visa costs and limit access for applicants. On paper, this shouldn’t bother me since I have a valid visa for two more years. But in today’s situation, having a valid visa is one thing; getting into the US is another.

US airports see between 210,000 and 250,000 foreign visitors daily, depending on the season. After September 11, vetting of arrivals increased, but scrutiny has risen since 2025, after Trump’s second term began.

Scrutiny can involve US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) checking your phone and reviewing your social media. In 2025, WIRED magazine reported that CBP conducted more than 55,424 electronic-device searches.

As I prepared for this trip, two recent examples of what I saw as US consular overreach during Trump’s presidency came to mind. One was when they revoked the visa of Africa’s first Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka, for criticizing Trump. He compared Trump to the former Ugandan dictator, Idi Amin. It didn’t matter that Trump had called Nigeria a shithole and a disgrace.

The other example was the revocation of the valid visa of Somali FIFA referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan when he arrived in the US. They claimed he had links to a terrorist group, which he denied, but FIFA stayed out of it.

It wasn’t like this in the last one-and-a-half decades I have been coming to America. Visiting was always fun. When I planned this holiday nearly a year ago, I never thought doubt and hesitation would replace trust, hope, and freedom.

With all these thoughts, I didn’t know what to expect on this trip and considered cancelling it. America doesn’t seem like it used to be for me or for many US citizens who have seen their country change in a strange way recently.

I was unsure what to expect, especially with my strong views on Trump’s actions. Will America still be warm to visitors and friendly to strangers? Or is it now a place filled with meanness, fear of others, and narrow-mindedness?

After a six-hour flight from Abuja to Frankfurt, a two-hour stop, and a 10-hour 35-minute flight, I landed at Houston International Airport on June 10. I approached border security, unsure of what to expect. It felt like going to see a friend who has become a bully.

The border police surprised me. Except for a Customs officer who flagged me and took a small packet of velvet tamarin from my luggage, my entry was smooth. The CBP was warm and professional. I met a few police officers in Houston and Florida who made me feel there might still be hope.

I have only been here a few days. Maybe the spirit of the FIFA 2026 World Cup, with the US as one of the hosts, is making things friendly, especially with many tourists around. Perhaps the White House is trying to show its best side right now.

Whatever happens, there are some things I promised myself I won’t do for my mother’s sake. I won’t drive, even if I could, and I won’t walk the streets without my passport, day or night.

It wasn’t like this in the last one-and-a-half decades I’ve been coming to America. Visiting was always fun. When I planned this holiday nearly a year ago, I couldn’t imagine doubt and hesitation would replace trust, hope, and freedom.

But what does it matter? This is their America. Maybe my old teacher was right after all. When it’s all said and done, we journalists will still be here telling the complicated story of what happened in their America to those in another America.