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Port Of Entry Podcast: Black Expats Finding Refuge From Racism In Mexico

David Jones (left) and Omar and Aqueelah Dames are pictured in this undated photo collage.
Collage by Kinsee Morlan
David Jones (left) and Omar and Aqueelah Dames are pictured in this undated photo collage.
A growing number of Black expats are now calling Mexico home. In a new episode, we talk to people who’ve left the U.S. to find some refuge from racism south of the border. From KPBS and PRX, “Port of Entry” tells cross-border stories that connect us.

Back when Donald Trump was first running for President, David Jones made himself a promise: if Trump got elected, Jones would move out of the country.

As a Black man, Jones said he just couldn’t imagine staying in a country run by a man he considers racist. So, when Trump did win the 2016 election, Jones kept his promise. He packed up his things and moved to Rosarito, Mexico.

“Ultimately, I moved to Baja, sight unseen,” Jones says. “And I've been here ever since.”

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Port of Entry Podcast: Black Expats Finding Refuge From Racism In Mexico

In a new episode of “Port of Entry,” a podcast from KPBS and PRX that tells cross-border stories, Jones explains what it’s like to be a Black Expat in Mexico.

Jones is joined by Omar and Aqueelah Dames, a couple who now lives in Mexico after traveling the world for the past few years. The Dames have two boys, and they say they left the U.S. to find a safer place to raise Black men. Now, the couple advocates for more Black people to consider living overseas through their Blacugees social media posts and video series.