Early wave of white South African immigrants reaches America
The kind of refugees that Trump wants
According to a report by the New York Times, the initial batch of refugees from President Trump’s specialized initiative for white South Africans landed in the United States on May 12.
A privileged group
The newspaper said 49 immigrants landed in the country in a charter flight paid for by the US after an expedited process to receive refugee status in three months, which usually takes up to 24 months. Administration officials received them.
Trump is "saving" them
President Trump told the media that “farmers are being killed” in South Africa. He granted special status to Afrikaners, contrary to his policy to halt refugee programs, under the impression that they were in danger.
Murder rate
However, the New York Times said South African Police data showed that from April 2020 to March 2024, 225 people were killed on farms, but only 53 of the victims were farmers, who are usually white.
Seeking greener pastures
Still, the narrative runs rampant. Recently, British newspaper The Guardian reported that some white South Africans regarded Donald Trump's offer as a “godsend” in the face of their current reality.
An offer
Back in March, AP News reported that the US Embassy in South Africa said around 67,000 white South Africans were interested in accepting President Trump’s offer to relocate to the US.
Executive order
The interest sparked after the President signed an executive order targeting the African nation and removing any aid. It also called to prioritize humanitarian relief for Afrikaners (descendants of white settlers).
Claims of discrimination
The executive order said the reason was South African “government actions fueling disproportionate violence against racially disfavored landowners.”
Land law
It referred to a land law that allows the South African government to expropriate land from people who are not using it productively, in very specific cases.
No seizing
According to the news agency, the South African government has not seized any land using the new law.
Misinformation
The nation’s leaders said President Trump’s claims are incorrect and based mainly on misinformation around the new law, which is meant to help correct the impacts of apartheid.
The demographic
The New York Times said that 8,000 people entered the program. Demographic data published by AP News in March suggested that most of them are between 25 and 45 years old with children.
