Edafe Okporo
Nigerian-American author (born 1990)
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Edafe Okporo (born March 3, 1990) is a Nigerian-American author. He is the Executive Director of Refuge America, an organization that helps to resettle LGBTQ+ asylum-seekers.[1] Born in Warri, Nigeria, Okporo experienced violence in his home country because of his sexuality and was made to undergo conversion therapy.[2] Okporo sought asylum in the United States after being attacked by a mob for advocating for healthcare access for gay men.[3][2]
Edafe Okporo | |
|---|---|
Okporo canvassing on election day in 2025 | |
| Born | Edafe Okporo March 3, 1990 |
When Okporo arrived in the United States, he was held at an ICE detention center in Elizabeth, New Jersey for five months.[4][5] After being granted asylum, Okporo became homeless, living at Newark Penn Station and at a shelter.[5] Once he found stable housing, Okporo served as the first director of RDJ Refugee Shelter, New York City's first shelter for asylum-seekers.[5][2] Okporo wrote a book, Asylum: A Memoir and Manifesto, detailing his experience seeking asylum in the United States.[6][3]
Okporo ran for New York City Council District 7, and if elected, he would have been the first former asylum-seeker elected to that body. Edafe receive 24.8% of the vote in the Democratic primary and, running as an independent, received 4.7% of the vote in the general election.[7][8][9] Okporo is a David Prize recipient.[10]
