Welcome to Friends of Nigeria

Friends of Nigeria (FON) is a group of more than 2,000 returned PCVs and staff who served in Nigeria. FON is deeply concerned about the current situation in our country under the Trump administration and, as such, we are asking that the NPCA partner with the No Kings movement to support its protest of Trump's illegal and aberrant behavior.

One of the Peace Corps’ founding goals is to foster a better understanding of other cultures on the part of Americans, with an emphasis on cooperation and mutual respect. In direct opposition to that guiding principle, Donald Trump has cut foreign aid programs like USAID that did so much to improve lives and reduce mortality rates in developing countries. He has attacked Nigeria with Tomahawk missiles, having been convinced to view the complex conflict there through a simplistic single lens, the persecution of Christians. He has disparaged immigrants from “shit hole” countries and created false narratives about our Haitian, Latino and Somali communities. And, he is transforming the U.S. immigration system into an exclusionary tool that undermines legal, economic, and constitutional norms.

We applaud the NPCA for providing links to rallies and events on its member website. NPCA is the only nationwide organization concerned with, and advocating for, the Peace Corps. The Peace Corps has thus far survived at a time when other programs like USAID and Voice of America have been destroyed by this administration, so we recognize the sensitivity and risk involved if NPCA becomes a voice in the No Kings movement. Still, at this critical time we think our primary focus must be on doing the right thing for our country and its immigrants. Given the lawless and erratic behavior of this administration, there is no guarantee that remaining silent will keep the Peace Corps safe. In fact, the opposite has often proven true.

As we celebrate the 65th anniversary of the founding of the Peace Corps, FON thinks there is no more appropriate action we can take to mark the founding than to stand together with No Kings to honor our country and our immigrant friends and neighbors, and to push back against those who would dehumanize and harm them. We encourage other affiliates to join us. Please contact Alan Frishman, President, FON, at aifrishman@gmail.com.

Our 2025 Annual Meeting featured two speakers, Dr. Zach Klim from the Museum of the Peace Corps Experience and Dr. Ebenezer Obadare from the Council on Foreign Relations, followed by the popular 'cocktail hour' when members enjoy seeing and hearing from old friends.

Click  here to see a video of the Annual Meeting.  Once the video is loaded, use the following Passcode to continue:  &6e%zi@^

Navigate to the following times for each section of the Annual Meeting

          Business Meeting:  00:43:08  (Hours:minutes:seconds)
          Museum of the Peace Corps, Zach Klim:  01:37:40
          Council on Foreign Relations, Ebenezer Obadare:  03:01:01
          Cocktail Hour:  04:23:05

Friends of Nigeria was one of three finalists for the annual Loret Miller Ruppe Award, named after the 10th Director of the Peace Corps.  The Award is 
presented by NPCA to RPCV affiliate groups for outstanding initiatives and projects that successfully:

          ● promote the Third Goal of Peace Corps, or
          ● continue to serve host countries, or
          ● build cooperation between communities, or
          ● promote service and volunteerism

The purpose of the award is to recognize the work that RPCV groups are doing and to share ideas and practices that other groups can replicate.  Each finalist submitted a video to highlight its program.  Click here to see each of the three videos.  The video submitted by Friends of Nigeria begins 00:13:35 (Hours:minutes:seconds)