Another small group of South Africans have slipped into the United States under a little-publicised refugee policy signed by President Donald Trump earlier this year, one that’s already drawing sharp global criticism.
Nine Afrikaners, descendants of Dutch settlers in South Africa, reportedly arrived in Atlanta this week as part of a pilot refugee programme backed by the Trump administration. The group is the second wave of applicants to be granted asylum under Trump’s February executive order, which controversially granted refugee status to white South Africans amid widely debunked claims of a ‘white genocide’ and land seizure crisis.
The organisation Amerikaners, a US-based group advocating for Afrikaner migration, confirmed the group’s arrival via a social media post by member Katia Beeden on Friday, 30 May. According to Beeden, ‘new people’ desperate to leave South Africa have also been invited for immigration interviews by US officials.
Among those who made the move is Mpumalanga native Charl Kleinhaus (46) who left behind his dogs, mother and a five-bedroom farmhouse in search of what he called ‘a safer future’ for his children. In an interview with the BBC, Kleinhaus said the decision was painful but necessary.
Also making the journey was 48-year-old Errol Langton, a farmer from KwaZulu-Natal, who told the New York Times he hopes to continue working the land, only now, in America.
The Trump administration’s decision has drawn both fierce support and condemnation. Right-wing commentators have championed it as a humanitarian gesture, while critics have labelled it racially motivated and factually baseless, especially in light of data from organisations like Human Rights Watch and Africa Check, who say there is no evidence of a targeted campaign against white South Africans.
A US government insider told The Hill that the aim is to resettle thousands more by the end of the American summer, possibly accelerating the programme ahead of the 2026 election cycle. Internal documents reviewed by several media outlets suggest that refugee interviews are currently being fast-tracked for Afrikaner applicants through consular appointments in Pretoria and Cape Town.
Meanwhile, back in South Africa, reactions have been mixed. Some hail the programme as a lifeline. Others view it as part of a dangerous narrative that fuels division and ignores the country’s broader social context.
The US State Department has yet to formally release the number of South Africans accepted under the new refugee directive, and both governments have remained tight-lipped about the long-term implications of the plan.
As the story unfolds, more South Africans could be heading west, not for opportunity, but, they believe, for survival.
Also read:
Picture: Chip Somodevilla/ Gallo Images
