An American couple, James and Kaylee Wilson, are currently stranded in Lagos, Nigeria, with their newly adopted two-year-old son, Oluwatoyin, following a recent U.S. presidential proclamation under President Donald Trump that restricts internationally adopted persons from entering the country—a policy the family asserts marks an unprecedented historical break as “the first time in American history that adopted children have been banned from entering the country.”
Having arrived in Nigeria in March 2025 after a year of preparation to complete the adoption of Oluwatoyin, who was born just four days after their biological son Valor in a situation the couple calls “artificial twinning,” the Wilsons now find themselves in legal limbo despite passing extensive vetting by the FBI, Homeland Security, and Nigerian authorities. James Wilson explained that the current proclamation “completely blocks adoption visas” except for rare waivers that benefit government interests, forcing the family of seven—which includes 11-year-old Emmanuella adopted from Ghana, 10-year-old Eden adopted from Nigeria, and two biological children—to remain in West Africa indefinitely.
While the couple sustains themselves through U.S.-based online jobs and continues to homeschool their children, they remain resolute in their refusal to leave their youngest son behind, with Kaylee Wilson affirming, “Our children are worth fighting for,” and James adding, “Being together as a family matters more than comfort or convenience. Wherever we are together, that is where home is.”