Nigerian Immigrant Becomes First Black Colorado Mayor

Yemi Mobolade, a Nigerian immigrant and businessman in the United States, became the first Black mayor in Colorado.

On Tuesday, Mr Mobolade was sworn in at Pioneers Museum to become the mayor of the second-largest city in the western US state of Colorado.

During the inauguration ceremony, the governor of Colorado, Jered Polis, said Mr Mobolade’s story inspired him.

“Somebody who has dedicated his life to making Colorado Springs and America a better place, whose story we can all identify with, who came here, who started businesses,” Mr Polis stated.

Mr Mobolade is a Nigerian immigrant who moved to the country 27 years ago as a student and became a US citizen in 2017.

The father of three owns two restaurants and runs a church in his community.

“I wake up every morning and I think it’s a dream, and then I realise, no, this really happened,” the VOA quoted Mr Mobolade to have said.

He added, “I am a Black leader. I am a Black mayor. I am an immigrant mayor. Why that matters is because there are a lot of young black kids and minority kids that find inspiration and hope in my story.”