Overview:
When asked why so many Ethiopians in Denver have stayed in the area, one person replied, "The community is in every corner."
Nearly 50,000 Ethiopians live in the Denver Metro Area. Those who live in the Mile High City cite economic progress and a close-knit Ethiopian community as reasons for choosing to settle here. There are now second, third and fourth-generation Ethiopian immigrants born and raised in Colorado.
“There was just so many of us that it was impossible to not grow up around [Ethiopians],” Abigale Yilma said. Yilma assists with events and local projects funded through the Colorado Ethiopian Community Center. “There are so many [Ethiopian] people here that would help you. I feel like it would be so much easier to move here than somewhere else where there would be no community,” said Yilma.
Denver’s schools and workforce are now flooded with Ethiopian influence, and the conflict in Tigray has only increased numbers since 2020. Currently, Denver and Aurora have over a dozen Ethiopian restaurant options; there is an Ethiopian Community Center and multiple churches that preach in the Amharic language. There is also a local fund started by the Ethiopian Community Center that allows Habesha immigrants to offer and receive support from each other like a shared network.
Yilma says that she was able to integrate into a fully established community that allowed her to experience remnants of her Ethiopian heritage. Yilma’s father, Yilma Kebede, enjoys being close to hundreds of friends and family members who can support him. “I know that if I call an Ethiopian right now, I have 400-500 Ethiopian names,” Kebede said.
The influx of Ethiopians migrating to the US started to increase at the cusp of the 1980s amidst a bloody civil war. In search of job opportunities and resources, major cities became centers for chain migration.
Kebede was a product of this chain. He was able to immigrate to the US, become a homeowner and raise his two children amongst the thousands of Ethiopians living in the Greater Denver Area. “Back in the day, there were not a lot of Africans to talk to,” he said.
Kebede quietly left his home country in 1990 on foot. He temporarily moved to Jinka, what is now the southern border of Ethiopia, and stayed for three months under the guise that he would be a permanent resident. He joined a soccer and volleyball team and avoided any suspicions that he was planning to leave. “One day during the game at halftime, I just left,” Kebede said.
From the southern border, Kebede walked to Nairobi, Kenya, where he lived for a year while awaiting his opportunity to relocate to the United States. “It was one trip through the desert. You just take a break and then keep walking,” Kebede said. He was fortunate to find a sponsor in 1991, which accelerated the process of immigrating to Queens, New York City.
Kebede went to multiple cities around the country looking for the right fit, whether to reunite with family or find work opportunities. In 2002, Kebede and his wife Shiwaye settled in Denver and now reside in Aurora.
“The community is in every corner,” Kebede said. “If you need help, they can feed you a meal, show you where to go and where to get a job.” He compared his experience to New York, where a familiar face was a surprise to see. Within a small pocket of East Denver through Aurora and Green Valley Ranch, there are thousands of Ethiopian Americans offering jobs, homes, and food.
The Ethiopian Community Center has also been a large pull for new immigrants who need information, translation and resources while acclimating to Denver. “It’s a nonprofit that tries to keep the community together,” Keduse Abuhay said. “They also help with people who just immigrated here, helping them to transition into American life.”
Keduse Abuhay is a second-generation Ethiopian immigrant who is heavily involved in the Ethiopian Community Center and a Habesha dance troupe called “For the Culture.” His mother inspired him to take part in the Habesha dance tradition and to retain the language and Orthodox faith inherited through thousands of years of sacred heritage.
Abuhay has been able to take the dance troupe to local events such as the Ethiopian New Year celebration in Denver that takes place annually on Sept. 11. He also teaches traditional Habesha dances and has been able to preserve and educate others on Ethiopian traditions.
“I mostly do dancing to keep the culture alive and to teach the next generation,” Abuhay said. He says that the cost of living plus Denver’s similar climate to the Ethiopian highlands makes it appealing to newly arriving Habeshas. A larger component of becoming more accustomed to American culture involves learning and immersing in foreign customs.
“A lot of the time, in order for the parents to fully evolve into the culture here, they stop speaking their language,” Abuhay said. “They stop teaching certain things. A lot of it gets lost through time.”
Abhuhay and Yilma both feel a strong conviction in their community to continue to build on the foundation that their families have established through hard labor and a difficult language barrier. “The one thing that I like about our people is that we help each other,” Abuhay said. “If we can buy a home, then you can buy a home. We saved money so we’re going to show you how to save money. If we did it, then you can do it.”
