Photo: AFP
A group of white South Africans is flying to the U.S. after the Trump administration offered them refugee status amid alleged "race-based persecution."
On Sunday (May 11), 49 Afrikaners, the white minority group in South Africa, departed their homeland on a privately chartered flight to Dulles International Airport outside of Washington under Trump's refugee plan, per the Associated Press.
The relocation comes after Trump issued an executive order in February that accused the South African government of discrimination against Afrikaners and announced a refugee program offering to relocate them to the U.S.
The Trump administration further claims the South African government is enacting racist, anti-white policies through affirmative action laws and targeting Afrikaners' land through a new land expropriation law. The U.S. has also alleged that Afrikaners are being targeted in racially motivated attacks in rural communities.
The South African government said it was "completely false" that Afrikaners are being persecuted. The claims are based on misinformation, and Afrikaners' land isn't being expropriated, the government stated. The government also denied claims of racism and attacks against white South Africans, noting that the group is “amongst the most economically privileged” in the country.
Refugee groups have questioned the Trump administration's move to fast-track applications for white South Africans while halting arrivals from Afghanistan, Iraq, sub-Saharan Africa, and other areas wracked by war and natural disasters. Vetting for refugee status in the U.S. usually takes years.
The first group of Afrikaners is expected to be welcomed at the Dulles International Airport by a U.S. government delegation, including the deputy secretary of state and officials from the Department of Health and Human Services.
The flight is a part of a "much larger-scale relocation effort,” White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller said in a statement, adding that what's happening to Afrikaners in their homeland “fits the textbook definition of why the refugee program was created.”
“This is persecution based on a protected characteristic — in this case, race. This is race-based persecution,” Miller said.
The Black Information Network is your source for Black News! Get the latest news 24/7 on The Black Information Network. Listen now on the iHeartRadio app or click HERE to tune in live.