Fifty-nine South African citizens of Afrikaner descent have been granted refugee status in the United States.
President Trump attributed the expedited processing of their applications to alleged racial discrimination against this minority group in South Africa.
The South African government contests this assertion, stating that the group does not meet the criteria for refugee status.
This action stands in stark contrast to the Trump administration’s broader halt on refugee admissions, including those fleeing war zones. Human Rights Watch has criticized this decision as discriminatory, noting the denial of refuge to thousands of other applicants, many of whom are Black African and Afghan refugees.
The group arrived at Dulles International Airport near Washington D.C. on Monday, receiving a warm welcome from U.S. officials, some waving small American flags amidst celebratory decorations.
While refugee processing typically takes months or even years, this group’s applications were fast-tracked. The UNHCR confirmed to the BBC that it was not involved in their vetting process.
When questioned about the expedited processing, President Trump cited an ongoing “genocide” targeting “white farmers” in South Africa, clarifying that race was not a determining factor in his decision.
“Farmers are being killed, they happen to be white, but whether they’re white or black makes no difference to me,” he stated.
However, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa refuted this assessment during a phone call with President Trump, asserting that the situation did not meet the definition of a refugee crisis.
Ramaphosa emphasized that refugee status requires demonstrable fear of political, religious, or economic persecution, a condition he argued did not apply to this group.
In response, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau stated at Dulles Airport that it was “not surprising… that a country from which refugees come does not concede that they are refugees.”
The U.S. government has openly criticized South Africa’s land reform policies, alleging the seizure of land from white farmers without compensation.
In January, President Ramaphosa signed legislation enabling the government to seize privately owned land without compensation under specific circumstances deemed equitable and in the public interest.
However, the South African government maintains that no land seizures have occurred under this act.
Frustration exists in South Africa regarding the slow pace of land reform since the end of apartheid three decades ago. While Black South Africans constitute over 90% of the population, they hold only approximately 4% of privately owned land, according to a 2017 report.
Elon Musk, a close advisor to President Trump and a South African native, previously made claims of a “genocide of white people” in South Africa and accused the government of enacting “racist ownership laws.”
These genocide claims have been widely refuted.
Representative Gregory Meeks, the ranking Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, characterized the Trump administration’s actions as “not just a racist dog whistle, it’s a politically motivated rewrite of history.”
The Episcopal Church announced it would cease collaboration with the federal government on refugee resettlement due to the preferential treatment afforded to the Afrikaners.
Vice President JD Vance’s succinct reaction on X was simply, “Crazy”.
Melissa Keaney, an attorney with the International Refugee Assistance Project, described the White House’s decision as exhibiting “a lot of hypocrisy and unequal treatment.”
Her organization is currently suing the Trump administration following the indefinite suspension of the USRAP program in January, a policy affecting over 120,000 conditionally approved refugees.
Afrikaner author Max du Preez described claims of persecution against white South Africans as a “total absurdity” lacking any factual basis.
South African police data from 2024 reports 44 farm murders, with eight victims being farmers. While South Africa does not categorize crime statistics by race, the majority of farmers are white, while farm laborers are predominantly Black.
U.S.-South Africa relations have been strained since President Trump’s initial directive to resettle Afrikaners, a group of primarily Dutch descent.
In March, South Africa’s ambassador to the U.S., Ebrahim Rasool, was expelled after accusing President Trump of employing “white victimhood as a dog whistle,” prompting a counter-accusation of “race-baiting” from the U.S.
The U.S. also criticized South Africa’s stance against Israel at the ICJ, where South Africa accused the Israeli government of genocide against Palestinians—a claim vehemently denied by Israel.
President Trump’s decision to accept Afrikaner refugees occurred amidst a broader U.S. crackdown on migrants and asylum seekers from other nations.
Additional reporting by Khanyisile Ngcobo in Johannesburg & Cai Pigliucci in Washington DC
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