Why are white refugees from South Africa coming to the US?

A group of 59 white South Africans, mainly Afrikaners, arrived in the United States this week under a refugee resettlement initiative led by President Donald Trump. The programme, introduced earlier this year, has fast-tracked applications from members of this white minority group, with Trump claiming they are victims of racially motivated violence and “genocide” in their homeland. This controversial move comes amid a near-total suspension of other refugee admissions, including those from war-torn countries such as Afghanistan and regions in sub-Saharan Africa.

Why are Afrikaans leaving South Africa?

The Trump administration has accused the South African government led by a Black-majority African National Congress of failing to protect Afrikaners from rising farm attacks and political rhetoric that allegedly fuels anti-white sentiment. Trump, along with South African-born adviser Elon Musk, has also condemned South Africa’s land reform policies, accusing the government of enabling land seizures without compensation and targeting white landowners. “So we’ve essentially extended citizenship to those people... to escape from that violence and come here,” Trump told reporters, insisting his decision had nothing to do with race.

The Trump administration criticised South Africa’s affirmative action policies as anti-white and falsely claimed white farmers were having land seized under a new expropriation law. In reality, no land has been taken, though some Afrikaners fear they may be targeted. South Africa’s laws aim to improve employment and land access for Black citizens, historically disadvantaged under apartheid. However, many white South Africans and political groups argue these laws are discriminatory. The government denies this, insisting they address past inequalities, not punish Afrikaners.

What has the South African government said?
The South African government has strongly rejected these allegations. President Cyril Ramaphosa said he personally told Trump that the claims of persecution are unfounded. “A refugee is someone who has to leave their country out of fear of political, religious or economic persecution. And they don’t fit that bill,” he said. South Africa’s Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola echoed that view, stating that violent crime affects all races and farm murders are part of broader criminal trends, not racial targeting.

Data from farming organisations records around 50 farm-related homicides annually a small fraction of the country’s total 20,000 homicides each year. Most victims of violent crime in South Africa are young Black men living in urban areas. While farm attacks are real and feared in rural white communities, the idea of a state-sanctioned campaign against Afrikaners has been widely debunked. Critics say the Afrikaners remain among the wealthiest and most influential groups in South Africa, maintaining cultural and political visibility.

Nevertheless, many Afrikaners, particularly those in rural areas, have expressed deep-seated anxiety about crime and their long-term future in a post-apartheid nation where power has shifted. Some see affirmative action laws and employment equity policies as forms of reverse discrimination. Although no land has yet been seized under South Africa’s new expropriation laws, the spectre of future redistribution has stoked fears among some white farming communities.

The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) was not involved in vetting the South African applications, which is unusual in standard resettlement processes. Some religious organisations have withdrawn from working with the US government over what they see as the preferential treatment of white applicants. Max du Preez, a prominent Afrikaner journalist, summed up the scepticism by saying, “This is about Trump and MAGA, not about us. The people who left likely didn’t want to live in a society where whites no longer call the shots.”