A small group of lawmakers recently flew over 5,000 miles to Nigeria to send a clear message to the leaders of the African nation where Christians are facing severe persecution.
“I wanted to do a trip to make a statement that we’re watching, that we’re paying attention, that we’re in solidarity with the Nigerian people,” Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., told The Daily Signal.
Huizenga spent about 30 hours on the ground in Nigeria over the weekend in a whirlwind trip accompanied by Reps. Michael Baumgartner, R-Wash., Keith Self, R-Texas, and Jefferson Shreve, R-Texas. The congressmen met with multiple Nigerian leaders during the brief trip.
General Christopher Gwabin Musa, the Nigerian minister of defense, is a Christian himself, the Congressman says, and after learning that the members of Congress planned to attend a church service outside Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria, Musa joined the delegation for the service.
“I think this may have been one of the most important things that happened on the trip, was having … Minister Musa come and hear directly, and hear the support for him” from church leaders, Huizenga said.
Attending the service and worshipping alongside the Nigerian people and minister of defense was a “powerful” experience, Huizenga said. He added that he believes the minister’s appointment to the position just earlier this month is good step in the right direction toward addressing the violent persecution of Christians.
Huizenga says he plans to meet with President Donald Trump “directly” in the future to discuss the trip and next steps to address the violence in Nigeria.
Radical Islamic Muslims and Fulani Muslims have killed more than 50,000 Christians in Nigeria since 2009, and about 7,000 in the first half 2025 alone, according to Genocide Watch.
Christians have faced persecution in Nigeria for more than two decades, but violence against followers of Jesus grew far worse with the rise of Boko Haram in 2009, according to Global Christian Relief.
Fulani Muslims are also carrying out attacks against Christians in Nigeria, though these attacks are driven, at least in part, by socio-economic tensions.
The trip Huizenga led to Nigeria represents the second congressional delegation to the African nation within the past 40 days. Rep. Riley Moore, R-W. V., led a trip to Nigeria in November. Moore said that he had a “frank, honest, and productive discussion with senior members of the Nigerian government regarding the horrific violence and persecution Christians face and the ongoing threat terrorism poses across Nigeria.”
The persecution of Christians in Nigeria has drawn attention from lawmakers, political leaders, and celebrities alike.
At the end of October, Trump announced he was designating Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern.” Trump also asked members of Congress to look into the issue of Christian persecution in Nigeria and report back to him.
The message now to the Nigerian government is “we’re not going away,” Huizenga said. The U.S. won’t accept the claims some in the Nigeria government have made discrediting the violence or even claiming it is not happening.
“We’re paying attention,” Huizenga says.
