The United States has enlisted a group called Amerikaners, formed by white South Africans seeking resettlement, to help identify candidates for a Trump administration refugee programme aimed at “Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination.”
In a notice posted on Monday, the U.S. embassy in South Africa said Amerikaners is now a designated State Department referral partner. The group will gather information from prospective applicants to assess eligibility and refer qualifying cases to the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program.
Pretoria condemned the initiative, arguing that claims of discrimination are unfounded and that members of the white minority—South Africa’s most economically privileged demographic—do not meet the legal definition of refugees.
Washington has discussed admitting around 30,000 white South Africans over the coming year, a scale-up from the fewer than 100 arrivals recorded as of early August, according to figures cited by local media.
Amerikaners is led by Sam Busa, a 60-year-old South African of British descent, who launched the group after Trump’s February executive order created the programme. An early memo posted on the group’s website pledged support for resettlement, described the community’s values as “Christian, conservative, and English-speaking,” and said they sought an opportunity to “serve America,” not charity. Busa declined to comment.
A State Department spokesperson, without naming specific partners, said the U.S. was “grateful for the many South African citizens who have expressed their support for this refugee program.”