More White South Africans Land in the U.S. as Refugees

“It is a smaller group, including children. Several more groups will fly to the USA over the next few weeks,” Jaco Kleynhans, head of Public Relations for the majority white trade union group, Solidarity, told local news publication IOL. “The US Embassy in Pretoria, in collaboration with the State Department in Washington DC, is currently processing 8,000 applications, and we expect many more Afrikaner refugees to travel to the USA over the next few months.”

Ramaphosa has labelled the white South Africans who emigrated to the U.S. as refugees, "cowards." Speaking at an agricultural exhibition in the Free State province, Ramaphosa said those leaving the country didn't want to work through the country's challenges and attempts at addressing decades of socioeconomic inequality brought about by apartheid.

At the Africa CEO Forum 2025, Ramaphosa also said he believes the U.S. government is getting the "wrong end of the stick" in its acceptance of Afrikaner refugees. "Those people who have fled, they're not being persecuted, they're not being hounded, they're not being treated badly, and they're leaving ostensibly because they don't want to embrace the changes that are taking place in our country in accordance with our constitution," he said.

Ramaphosa's comments, calling those granted refugee status cowards, immediately drew the ire of Afrikaner campaigners like Afriforum leader Kallie Kriel, who said the government is pushing "discriminatory racial legislation and draconian race-based regulations that directly contribute to the alienation of minority communities."

However, many of the reactions online to the white South African refugees have been similar to Ramaphosa's. Speaking to SABC News, author Kim Heller said that the emigration and cries of some white South Africans indicate that "we've failed the humanity test." Online, many have adopted the humorous term 'The Great Tsek', with tsek being a popular contraction of the Afrikaans word, voetsek, which means "go away" or "get lost," and can be playful or stinging depending on the context.

"I have no issue with South Africans leaving, but leaving and then calling themselves refugees is laughable!" actor Siv Ngesi wrote in an X post, echoing a prominent sentiment on social media. Meanwhile, consumer scientist and chef Zandile Queen Finxa was surprised at the luggage brought in. "That's a lot of luggage for poor, displaced refugees," she said, referring to a photo of the emigrants surrounded by boxes and bags.

Earlier this year, U.S. President Donald Trump claimed that South Africa’s government is persecuting its minority white population and proceeded to sign an executive order stopping all financial aid to South Africa. Trump also offered resettlement to white South Africans, and about 70,000 people reportedly indicated interest in relocating to the U.S. as refugees.

The first batch of refugees is part of a “much larger-scale relocation effort,” according to White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller. The Trump administration’s acceptance of Afrikaner refugees is the latest escalation of its strained relationship with South Africa, even though its stance is partly based on gross misinformation.

While many white South Africans have ridiculed the idea that they need to be rescued and seek asylum in the U.S., the Trump administration has made the refugee program for Afrikaners a priority. This is happening at a time when refugees and protected immigrants are having their rights to remain in the U.S. revoked.

Last month, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that it would not renew the temporary protected status (TPS) of some 7,900 Cameroonians. TPS, granted to people from countries dealing with armed conflicts and other dire circumstances, is routinely renewed every 18 months. The decision to end the TPS designation for the thousands of affected Cameroonians could lead to forced removals from the U.S. by late June.

Over half a million migrants from Afghanistan, Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela have had their TPS designation revoked.

Also, last month, the U.S. government announced that it had revoked the visas of all South Sudanese and placed travel restrictions on the East African country. It cited South Sudan’s unwillingness to accept the return of its citizens in “a timely manner.” South Sudan’s government had initially rejected the deportation of an individual from the U.S., stating that the person was from Congo.

However, following strong words from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, South Sudan accepted the deported individual, hoping to undo the visa revocation announcement, which didn’t happen. South Sudan, the world’s youngest country, is in danger of plunging into another civil war, and the visa revocation endangers the lives of those who successfully sought asylum in the U.S. and could be forcefully deported.

Trump’s stance towards Africa (and the global south) has mainly been antagonistic. He infamously referred to African countries as “shithole” countries during his first term. This makes the extension of refugee status to white South Africans a curious case, if not disturbing.

South Africa’s former ambassador to the U.S., Ebrahim Rasool, was expelled by the American government after he suggested that white supremacy plays a role in Trump’s relationship with South Africa.

According to a draft list, 22 of the 43 countries that could face travel restrictions to the U.S. are African countries. Libya, Somalia, and Sudan are among eight countries that could face an outright travel ban. Eritrea, South Sudan, and Sierra Leone would face travel restrictions, and citizens from 16 other African countries would need two months to clear serious security checks.