Grammy Award-winning American singer Ciara has officially become a citizen of Benin Republic, marking a significant moment under the West African nation’s new law aimed at reconnecting descendants of enslaved Africans with their ancestral homeland.
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The citizenship ceremony, held in Cotonou, was led by Benin’s Minister of Justice, Yvon Détchénou, who described the move as a powerful symbol of “justice, belonging, and hope.” Ciara becomes one of the first high-profile individuals to receive citizenship under the legislation, which was passed in September 2024.
According to the Associated Press, the new law grants Beninese citizenship to individuals over the age of 18 who can trace their lineage to victims of the transatlantic slave trade. Applicants must not hold any other African nationality and may prove their ancestry through DNA testing, documented family history, or sworn testimonies. To ease the process, Benin also launched a digital platform, My Afro Origins, allowing prospective citizens to apply online.
Benin, once a central hub of the transatlantic slave trade, is seeking to confront its painful past while building new bonds with the global Black diaspora. Between the 1600s and 1800s, an estimated 1.5 million people were captured from the region — which includes modern-day Benin, Nigeria, and Togo and sold into slavery, often with the involvement of local rulers.
Over the years, the country has made conscious efforts to acknowledge its role in that history. In the 1990s, Benin hosted international conferences on slavery, and in 1999, then-President Mathieu Kérékou issued a public apology to African Americans during a visit to Baltimore, Maryland.
Benin’s broader outreach strategy includes the promotion of “memorial tourism,” encouraging descendants of enslaved Africans to visit key historical sites. One such site is the Slave Route in Ouidah, a former slave port town, which ends at the haunting Door of No Return a symbolic gateway where enslaved people were forced onto ships bound for the Americas.
Following her naturalization, Ciara toured these solemn landmarks. She walked the Slave Route and visited the Door of No Return, describing the journey as deeply emotional and reflective.
“Between emotion, reflection, and heritage, I experienced a profound return to what truly matters,” she said.
Through this new law and symbolic reconnections like Ciara’s, Benin hopes to offer descendants of the diaspora not only a sense of belonging but also an opportunity to reclaim their ancestral identity and consider the country a second home.
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