CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump expanded its number Refugee places available for white South AfricansHe said there had been “recent increases in incitement to racially motivated violence” against them Black-led government and other political parties.
It’s unclear what provocation Trump was referring to when his administration announced Tuesday that 10,000 additional places for white South Africans in the refugee program this year would be expanded to 17,500.
This is Trump’s latest claim minority white Afrikaners They are being persecuted but the South African government denies this.
Here’s a look at what Trump says happened to white people in South Africa to justify their resettlement, and why his position that they were oppressed is so wrong: condemned as unfounded:
Attacks on farmers
Trump lays the groundwork for Afrikaner resettlement an executive order last year He said they were victims of racist violence fueled by government actions.
Afrikaners are white South Africans He is a descendant of Dutch and French settlers who first came to South Africa in the 1600s.
US issued few citations home attacks on white farmers as evidence of racist oppression. The South African government and analysts say this is a distortion of the facts because black farmers and agricultural workers are also killed and injured in violent robberies rather than racial attacks.
It is true that South Africa violent crime problem It affects all races, including white farmers.
According to official annual crime statistics, there were more than 23,000 murders in South Africa from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026; These murders affected all races but mostly the poor Black majority. There will be 29 murders on farms in 2025, according to Afrikaner lobby group AfriForum. Farm murders represent approximately 0.1% of homicides.
South African police They say Black people were also killed in these farm murders, but they generally do not separate rural crimes into a separate category or by the race of the victims.
The Afrikaner group AfriForum, which has been at the forefront of voicing concerns about rural crime, also does not publish how many Black farmers and farm workers have been killed, saying it “does not racialise the issue”.
anti-white rhetoric
The Trump administration said the recent increase in incitement to racist violence by the South African government and other politicians had led to an “unforeseen refugee emergency” and “serious humanitarian concerns.” for Afrikaners.
It was unclear what he was talking about because there had been no public incitement to violence by the South African government, which consists of a coalition of 10 political parties. run by white people. Whites, including people of Afrikaner origin, serve in the South African Cabinet.
Afrikaners are part of South Africa’s white minority; this minority also includes whites of British and other origins. There are approximately 4.5 million white people in South Africa’s population of 62 million; More than 80% of this population is black, but there are also other minorities of Indian and multiracial heritage.
In South Africa, where Afrikaners are prominent politicians and business leaders, the “emergency refugee situation” claims against Afrikaners are not reflected in daily life. and sports stars.
Their language, Afrikaans, is widely spoken and taught in schools as one of the country’s 11 official languages; Afrikaner monuments and churches remain standing and preserved as part of the country’s multicultural fabric.
The Trump administration has previously focused on: Far-left opposition party in South AfricaThe hymn fueled racial tensions, sometimes using a decades-old hymn from the period of resistance against the apartheid system of white minority rule that ended in 1994. This hymn contains the Boer lyrics “Kill the Boer”, a reference to the white farmer, and was investigated for hate speech.
The South African government did not condemn the hymn, saying it had a historical place linked to the fight against apartheid and should not be taken literally. Some Afrikaner groups, such as AfriForum, criticized the government for this stance and called for the chant to be outlawed.
The far-left party is not in the government and has no power on the national stage.
Affirmative action laws
South Africa’s affirmative action laws have also been cited by the Trump administration as evidence of anti-white policies. The laws are intended to improve opportunities for Blacks and others oppressed under white minority rule. They also aim to help women and people with disabilities. It is debated how successful they were..
They have become the focus of allies like Trump South African-born billionaire Elon MuskHe said he was prevented from obtaining a license for the Starlink satellite internet service in South Africa because he was white.
The government says this is a distortion. Starlink can operate in South Africa but must comply with affirmative action regulations that require previously disadvantaged groups in this sector to hold a minority stake in any local entity. The South African government says more than 600 American companies currently operate in South Africa and follow affirmative action regulations.
Refugee status of Afrikaners
The South African government had previously said that Afrikaners were free to go to the US; just as other South Africans emigrate for opportunities in other countries. But the government says these people should not be classified as refugees fleeing persecution.
“The allegation that white Africans in particular are subjected to systematic persecution is completely unfounded,” South African foreign ministry spokesman Chrispin Phiri told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Nearly 6,000 South Africans have moved to the United States since the Afrikaner program began last year, according to the U.S. government.
Other issues with South Africa
The Trump administration has a larger problem with the South African government, particularly its stance on the Israel-Palestine issue. South Africa has long been supporter of the Palestinian causeClose US ally accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza a very emotional case In the highest court of the United Nations.
Israel, which was founded in the wake of the Holocaust, has vehemently denied the allegations and opposed the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, saying it was an act of genocide in itself.
The United States cites South Africa’s stance on this issue and the country’s diplomatic relations with Iran as evidence of an anti-American foreign policy, which South Africa denies.
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Michelle Gumede in Johannesburg contributed to this report.
