Date: December 22, 2025
A Response from the Voice of the Persecuted Christian in Nigeria
To the Visiting U.S. Congressional Delegation
Honourable Members of Congress-Rep. Bill Huizenga and included Reps. Michael Baumgartner, Keith Self, and Jefferson Shreve,
We welcome you—not as dignitaries, but as witnesses.
We speak to you not from conference rooms or carefully curated briefings, but from burned villages, mass graves, orphaned children, widowed mothers, and churches that have become crime scenes. We speak as Nigerian Christians who live every day under the shadow of violence, displacement, and selective justice.
You say you have come to listen. Then please hear us plainly.
We did not ask for American troops on our soil. What we ask for is truth, moral clarity, and consequences for impunity.
You say the United States has ruled out “boots on the ground.” Very well. But understand this:
what is killing us is not the absence of U.S. soldiers—it is the absence of accountability.
You say the CPC designation is meant to “encourage reform through diplomatic pressure.” Yet from where we stand, that pressure seems to evaporate the moment it meets the comfort of Nigerian political elites. Our attackers still roam free. Our complaints still go unanswered. Our killers are rarely prosecuted. Entire Christian communities in the Middle Belt—Plateau, Benue, Southern Kaduna—are erased, while officials call it “communal clashes.”
Respectfully, this language is part of the problem.
You say the violence affects “communities of all faiths.” That is true in theory—but incomplete in practice. What we experience is patterned, persistent, and targeted. Churches are attacked. Christian farmlands are seized. Pastors are abducted. Worshippers are slaughtered. And when we cry out, we are told to be patient, to trust systems that have failed us repeatedly.
You distinguish between terrorism in the North-East and so-called communal violence elsewhere. On paper, that distinction may comfort policy frameworks. On the ground, it buries bodies. The men who attack us carry weapons of war, shout religious slogans, and act with confidence that no authority will stop them. Whether you label them terrorists, militias, or bandits, the result is the same: Christians are dying, and justice is absent.
You say “true friends don’t walk away.” We agree.
But true friends also do not sanitize reality to preserve partnerships.
If Nigeria’s CPC status is to be reviewed based on “measurable progress,” then please tell us:
– How many convictions for attacks on Christian communities count as progress?
– How many displaced Christians returning safely to their lands count as progress?
– How many dismantled terror networks count as progress?
Because what we see instead is a government skilled at making promises, forming committees, issuing statements—and doing very little.
You speak of “shoes on the ground, not boots.” Humanitarian aid is welcome, but aid without justice becomes a revolving door. We do not want to be permanent refugees fed by donations while our ancestral lands are occupied and our killers rewarded with silence.
We are concerned—deeply—that your visit risks becoming another photo opportunity that allows corrupt officials to say, “America understands us,” while nothing changes for those bleeding in the villages.
If you truly wish to help, then we ask for this:
• Name the violence accurately. Stop hiding targeted persecution behind neutral language.
• Tie diplomatic engagement to consequences. Visa bans, financial sanctions, and aid conditionality against officials who enable or ignore violence.
• Demand prosecutions, not promises. Justice is the deterrent we lack.
• Listen beyond government offices. Sit with survivors, widows, pastors, displaced families—without handlers.
• Do not trade our lives for stability optics. A stability built on mass graves is temporary and dangerous.
You warn that insecurity in Nigeria has global consequences. You are right. But understand this:
when Christians are slaughtered with impunity, when the rule of law collapses selectively, extremism does not stay local.
We are not asking the United States to fight our battles.
We are asking you not to help our oppressors feel comfortable.
History will remember whether this moment was one of courageous truth—or convenient diplomacy.
We are still here. We are still alive. We are still praying.
But we are running out of time.
The Persecuted Christian in Nigeria
Kingsley Shola Ayinde
On behalf of many whose voices were silenced before you arrived.
A Response from the Voice of the Persecuted Christian in Nigeria
To the Visiting U.S. Congressional Delegation
Honourable Members of Congress-Rep. Bill Huizenga and included Reps. Michael Baumgartner, Keith Self, and Jefferson Shreve,
We welcome you—not as dignitaries, but as witnesses.
We speak to you not from conference rooms or carefully curated briefings, but from burned villages, mass graves, orphaned children, widowed mothers, and churches that have become crime scenes. We speak as Nigerian Christians who live every day under the shadow of violence, displacement, and selective justice.
You say you have come to listen. Then please hear us plainly.
We did not ask for American troops on our soil. What we ask for is truth, moral clarity, and consequences for impunity.
You say the United States has ruled out “boots on the ground.” Very well. But understand this:
what is killing us is not the absence of U.S. soldiers—it is the absence of accountability.
You say the CPC designation is meant to “encourage reform through diplomatic pressure.” Yet from where we stand, that pressure seems to evaporate the moment it meets the comfort of Nigerian political elites. Our attackers still roam free. Our complaints still go unanswered. Our killers are rarely prosecuted. Entire Christian communities in the Middle Belt—Plateau, Benue, Southern Kaduna—are erased, while officials call it “communal clashes.”
Respectfully, this language is part of the problem.
You say the violence affects “communities of all faiths.” That is true in theory—but incomplete in practice. What we experience is patterned, persistent, and targeted. Churches are attacked. Christian farmlands are seized. Pastors are abducted. Worshippers are slaughtered. And when we cry out, we are told to be patient, to trust systems that have failed us repeatedly.
You distinguish between terrorism in the North-East and so-called communal violence elsewhere. On paper, that distinction may comfort policy frameworks. On the ground, it buries bodies. The men who attack us carry weapons of war, shout religious slogans, and act with confidence that no authority will stop them. Whether you label them terrorists, militias, or bandits, the result is the same: Christians are dying, and justice is absent.
You say “true friends don’t walk away.” We agree.
But true friends also do not sanitize reality to preserve partnerships.
If Nigeria’s CPC status is to be reviewed based on “measurable progress,” then please tell us:
– How many convictions for attacks on Christian communities count as progress?
– How many displaced Christians returning safely to their lands count as progress?
– How many dismantled terror networks count as progress?
Because what we see instead is a government skilled at making promises, forming committees, issuing statements—and doing very little.
You speak of “shoes on the ground, not boots.” Humanitarian aid is welcome, but aid without justice becomes a revolving door. We do not want to be permanent refugees fed by donations while our ancestral lands are occupied and our killers rewarded with silence.
We are concerned—deeply—that your visit risks becoming another photo opportunity that allows corrupt officials to say, “America understands us,” while nothing changes for those bleeding in the villages.
If you truly wish to help, then we ask for this:
• Name the violence accurately. Stop hiding targeted persecution behind neutral language.
• Tie diplomatic engagement to consequences. Visa bans, financial sanctions, and aid conditionality against officials who enable or ignore violence.
• Demand prosecutions, not promises. Justice is the deterrent we lack.
• Listen beyond government offices. Sit with survivors, widows, pastors, displaced families—without handlers.
• Do not trade our lives for stability optics. A stability built on mass graves is temporary and dangerous.
You warn that insecurity in Nigeria has global consequences. You are right. But understand this:
when Christians are slaughtered with impunity, when the rule of law collapses selectively, extremism does not stay local.
We are not asking the United States to fight our battles.
We are asking you not to help our oppressors feel comfortable.
History will remember whether this moment was one of courageous truth—or convenient diplomacy.
We are still here. We are still alive. We are still praying.
But we are running out of time.
The Persecuted Christian in Nigeria
Kingsley Shola Ayinde
On behalf of many whose voices were silenced before you arrived.
Date: December 22, 2025
A Response from the Voice of the Persecuted Christian in Nigeria
To the Visiting U.S. Congressional Delegation
Honourable Members of Congress-Rep. Bill Huizenga and included Reps. Michael Baumgartner, Keith Self, and Jefferson Shreve,
We welcome you—not as dignitaries, but as witnesses.
We speak to you not from conference rooms or carefully curated briefings, but from burned villages, mass graves, orphaned children, widowed mothers, and churches that have become crime scenes. We speak as Nigerian Christians who live every day under the shadow of violence, displacement, and selective justice.
You say you have come to listen. Then please hear us plainly.
We did not ask for American troops on our soil. What we ask for is truth, moral clarity, and consequences for impunity.
You say the United States has ruled out “boots on the ground.” Very well. But understand this:
what is killing us is not the absence of U.S. soldiers—it is the absence of accountability.
You say the CPC designation is meant to “encourage reform through diplomatic pressure.” Yet from where we stand, that pressure seems to evaporate the moment it meets the comfort of Nigerian political elites. Our attackers still roam free. Our complaints still go unanswered. Our killers are rarely prosecuted. Entire Christian communities in the Middle Belt—Plateau, Benue, Southern Kaduna—are erased, while officials call it “communal clashes.”
Respectfully, this language is part of the problem.
You say the violence affects “communities of all faiths.” That is true in theory—but incomplete in practice. What we experience is patterned, persistent, and targeted. Churches are attacked. Christian farmlands are seized. Pastors are abducted. Worshippers are slaughtered. And when we cry out, we are told to be patient, to trust systems that have failed us repeatedly.
You distinguish between terrorism in the North-East and so-called communal violence elsewhere. On paper, that distinction may comfort policy frameworks. On the ground, it buries bodies. The men who attack us carry weapons of war, shout religious slogans, and act with confidence that no authority will stop them. Whether you label them terrorists, militias, or bandits, the result is the same: Christians are dying, and justice is absent.
You say “true friends don’t walk away.” We agree.
But true friends also do not sanitize reality to preserve partnerships.
If Nigeria’s CPC status is to be reviewed based on “measurable progress,” then please tell us:
– How many convictions for attacks on Christian communities count as progress?
– How many displaced Christians returning safely to their lands count as progress?
– How many dismantled terror networks count as progress?
Because what we see instead is a government skilled at making promises, forming committees, issuing statements—and doing very little.
You speak of “shoes on the ground, not boots.” Humanitarian aid is welcome, but aid without justice becomes a revolving door. We do not want to be permanent refugees fed by donations while our ancestral lands are occupied and our killers rewarded with silence.
We are concerned—deeply—that your visit risks becoming another photo opportunity that allows corrupt officials to say, “America understands us,” while nothing changes for those bleeding in the villages.
If you truly wish to help, then we ask for this:
• Name the violence accurately. Stop hiding targeted persecution behind neutral language.
• Tie diplomatic engagement to consequences. Visa bans, financial sanctions, and aid conditionality against officials who enable or ignore violence.
• Demand prosecutions, not promises. Justice is the deterrent we lack.
• Listen beyond government offices. Sit with survivors, widows, pastors, displaced families—without handlers.
• Do not trade our lives for stability optics. A stability built on mass graves is temporary and dangerous.
You warn that insecurity in Nigeria has global consequences. You are right. But understand this:
when Christians are slaughtered with impunity, when the rule of law collapses selectively, extremism does not stay local.
We are not asking the United States to fight our battles.
We are asking you not to help our oppressors feel comfortable.
History will remember whether this moment was one of courageous truth—or convenient diplomacy.
We are still here. We are still alive. We are still praying.
But we are running out of time.
The Persecuted Christian in Nigeria
Kingsley Shola Ayinde
On behalf of many whose voices were silenced before you arrived.
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