At a news conference in Lagos, Nigeria, 91-year-old Soyinka said the US consulate notified him of the decision on October 23, with a request to surrender his visa for cancellation. The reason given was “additional information” that appeared after its release.
“I don’t have a visa, I’m obviously banned from the United States,” Soyinka said, describing the consulate’s note as “a bit of an unusual love letter” and “one of the funniest requests” he’s ever received.
The decision comes at a time when the administration of President Donald Trump, after his return to the White House in early 2025, is further tightening immigration regulations. In July, the U.S. State Department announced changes to the “reciprocal nonimmigrant visa policy,” limiting the duration and conditions of entry for most travelers from multiple countries, including Nigeria.
Wole Soyinka, who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1986, was for decades one of the most prominent African intellectuals and a long-time lecturer at prestigious American universities such as Harvard and Yale. He is the author of numerous works, among which are Chronicles from the Land of the Happiest People on Earth and a prison memoir The Man Diedcreated after his 22-month imprisonment during the Nigerian Civil War of 1967–1969.
Soyinka previously held US permanent resident status, but in 2016, to protest Trump’s election as president, he publicly tore up his green card.
Known for his harsh criticism of the US leader, he last month declined an invitation for a repeat visa interview and called Trump a “white-faced Idi Amin”, alluding to the notorious Ugandan dictator.
“When I called Donald Trump Idi Amin, I thought I was actually flattering him,” Soyinka said, with a smile, acknowledging that the statement could be grounds for revoking his visa.
