How Trump's massive deportations affect Portugal and the EU
28 January 2025
When we think about the new US president Donald Trump's massive plans for the deportation of illegal immigrants, the first people we think of are probably from Central or South America and perhaps Middle Eastern refugees. To very few, does an island far off the coast of Portugal come to mind.
The islanders living in the Azores archipelago have Portuguese nationality. More than one million Azoreans live in the US, 10% of them illegally. They came to the US in the 1950s through the "Azorean Refugee Act", which allowed them to emigrate easily after a volcano erupted on the islands, massively destroying infrastructure.
With the imminent threat of mass deportation, the Azores government has set a contingency plan. This is a measure learned from the past, as this isn't the first time Azoreans have faced deportation from the US.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the US forced many Azoreans to return to the Portuguese islands. This generated problems such as homelessness and drug consumption, as the islands weren't ready to accommodate so many people. This time, however, the Azores government wants to step up and provide better opportunities in health, education, jobs, and housing.
 | Marta Tuna Although the regional government is concerned, the Azorean community in the US says that Trump's government will focus mostly on the southern border. Still, the regional government's concerns are valid. After all, around 100,000 Azoreans may be expelled from the US – half of the archipelago's population. |
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