Defence of Trump’s Claim of a “Soft, Slow White Genocide” in South Africa, By Eric Ruger (Cape Town)
President Trump's statement, made during a May 12, 2025, press conference, asserts that white South African farmers, primarily Afrikaners, face a "genocide" characterised by brutal killings and land confiscation. He ties this to racial persecution, citing the Expropriation Act of 2024 and broader socio-political dynamics, including the controversial "Kill the Boer" song associated with the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party. Trump's executive order in February 2025, granting refugee status to Afrikaners, reflects his belief that they are victims of targeted violence and economic exclusion, potentially as retribution for apartheid-era injustices. The term "soft, slow genocide" suggests a gradual, systemic marginalisation rather than a rapid, overt extermination, aligning with claims of a payback agenda rooted in post-apartheid policies.
Trump's focus on "farmers being brutally killed" draws on reports of violent farm attacks, which disproportionately affect white Afrikaners due to their ownership of 70% of commercial farmland despite being 7% of the population; they are the productive backbone of the country, feeding the diverse. While South African police data from 2020–2024 records 225 farm murders, with 53 victims being farmers (mostly white), the brutality of these attacks fuels perceptions of racial targeting. For example, the "very brutal" murder of a 78-year-old white Boer farmer, Robert Stoltz, highlighting graphic violence that resonates with Afrikaner fears. Groups like AfriForum and the Transvaal Agricultural Union report around 60 farmer deaths annually, a rate higher than the general murder rate in a country with 19,000 murders yearly, suggesting a disproportionate risk.
The "Kill the Boer" song, sung at EFF rallies, is cited by Afrikaners as inciting violence. Although a 2022 South African court ruled it protected under free speech and not literal incitement, its historical roots in anti-apartheid resistance and its modern use by a party advocating radical land reform amplify fears among white farmers. Local podcasters escalated "anti-white rhetoric" after Trump's aid cuts, including derogatory racial insults, suggesting a cultural climate that could normalise hostility.
The Expropriation Act of 2024, which allows land seizure without compensation, is central to Trump's narrative. While South African officials argue it addresses apartheid-era land disparities (whites own 73% of profitable farmland), Afrikaners like Charl Kleinhaus, who arrived as a refugee, report threats to their property and lives. Policies like Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) and affirmative action, designed to redress historical inequities, are perceived by some whites as systemic discrimination. A post on X notes these policies "prioritize Black South Africans for jobs and economic opportunities, excluding qualified whites," leaving white youth with limited prospects.
Trump's deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, argues this fits the "textbook definition" of persecution based on race, a protected characteristic under refugee law. Afrikaners like Kyle, quoted in The Guardian, express despair over their children's future, claiming "they're at the bottom of the hiring list" due to race-based policies. This economic marginalisation, combined with high crime rates (7,000 murders in Q4 2024), fosters a "siege mentality" among whites, with 63% considering emigration per 2022 Afrobarometer data.
The notion of a "payback" agenda ties to historical grievances from apartheid, when Afrikaners created a prosperous society. Post-1994 policies aimed at Black empowerment are retaliatory. Trump's claim resonates with Afrikaner lobby groups like AfriForum, which argue that land reform and affirmative action disproportionately harm whites, creating new forms of discrimination. Elon Musk's posts on X, alleging "white genocide" and citing the "Kill the Boer" song, amplify this narrative, framing it as a response to anti-white sentiment from political figures.
The U.S. Embassy's February 2025 fact sheet criticises South Africa's government for "rights violations" and ties the refugee program to the land law, suggesting a broader geopolitical rebuke. This aligns with Trump's view that South Africa's policies reflect a punitive stance against Afrikaners, potentially as payback for historical dominance.
Trump argues that the media ignores white farmers' plight, claiming, "If it were the other way round, they'd talk about it." Posts on X echo this, accusing mainstream outlets of downplaying farm attacks while highlighting other human rights issues. The lack of global coverage, compared to high-profile apartheid-era campaigns, fuels perceptions of a "soft" genocide, one that unfolds without international outcry. This resonates with Afrikaners who feel their struggles are dismissed as "false narratives" by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Critics, including Ramaphosa and human rights groups, argue that "genocide" is a mischaracterisation. The Genocide Convention defines it as acts like killing or causing serious harm with intent to destroy a group based on race, religion, or nationality. South African courts, full of Black judges, including a February 2025 ruling, have dismissed white genocide claims as "clearly imagined," citing police data showing farm murders are not racially systematic. Most victims of farm attacks are Black workers, not white farmers, and the overall murder rate reflects South Africa's broader crime problem.
Rebuttal: While the legal threshold for genocide may or may not be met, Trump's use of the term could reflect a broader interpretation, encompassing systemic marginalisation and targeted violence. The disproportionate wealth and land ownership (whites hold 20 times more wealth than Blacks) do not negate individual experiences of violence or economic exclusion. The "Kill the Boer" song, even if legally protected, contributes to a climate of fear, as evidenced by Afrikaner refugees' testimonies.
South African officials and critics like Max du Preez argue that Afrikaners remain a "privileged minority," controlling 62% of top management positions and most private land. Ramaphosa calls those seeking refugee status a "fringe grouping" opposed to post-apartheid transformation, not victims of persecution. Humanitarian groups like Human Rights Watch criticise Trump's policy as a "cruel racial twist," valuing Afrikaners over refugees from warzones like Sudan.
Rebuttal: Historical privilege, earnt by back breaking work, does not immunise individuals from current harm. Afrikaners like Kyle report surviving violent attacks and fear land expropriation, suggesting real threats regardless of aggregate wealth. The refugee program's focus on Afrikaners reflects Trump's valuing of a specific issue, not a denial of other crises. The U.S. has limited capacity, and Trump's policy aligns with his critique of South Africa's land and ICJ policies.
South Africa's Ministry of International Relations calls Trump's refugee program "politically motivated" to undermine its supposed democracy Critics like Gregory Meeks and Laura Thompson Osuri label it a "racist dog whistle" tied to anti-DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) sentiments, amplified by Musk's influence.
Rebuttal: Geopolitical tensions, including South Africa's ICJ stance, may shape Trump's policy, but this does not negate Afrikaner grievances. Personal accounts, like those of Charl Kleinhaus, corroborate claims of harassment and property threats. The "Kill the Boer" song and policies like B-BBEE provide a basis for perceiving a payback agenda, even if not all Afrikaners face persecution. Trump's broader immigration crackdown suggests a selective humanitarian focus, not racial bias, as he claims race "makes no difference."
Trump's claim of a soft, slow genocide finds support in the lived experiences of us Afrikaners, as we face violent crime, economic exclusion, and a cultural climate shaped by songs like "Kill the Boer." The Expropriation Act and affirmative action policies, while aimed at redressing apartheid's legacy, are perceived as punitive by a minority fearing marginalisation. The term "genocide" captures the existential fears of us whites who feels targeted as payback for so-called historical sins.
The refugee program, welcoming 59 Afrikaners on May 12, 2025, responds to these fears. South Africa's high crime rate, affecting all races, and its efforts to address land inequity complicate the narrative, but Trump's focus highlights a specific issue: the vulnerability of white farmers in a nation grappling with its past. By framing this as a humanitarian crisis, Trump challenges the global narrative that Afrikaners, as a privileged minority, cannot be victims, a stance that resonates with his base and Afrikaner advocates like me.
"President Donald Trump was asked on Monday about granting an expedited path to refugee status for white South Africans while not allowing refugees from countries such as Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Trump replied in part, "Because they're being killed. And we don't want to see people be killed…it's a genocide that's taking place. Farmers are being killed. They happen to be white."
The president's comments came as a United States-funded flight carrying nearly 50 white South Africans departed Johannesburg on Sunday, marking the first group of Afrikaners granted refugee status under a new policy from Trump. The group arrived in Washington, D.C., on Monday.White South Africans say they've faced violence and economic exclusion due to their race, but their expedited relocation to the U.S. is drawing sharp criticism from humanitarian groups and South African officials.
In an announcement Monday morning, the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in South Africa said that the program was open to Afrikaners or other racial minorities in the country who could prove "a past experience of persecution or fear of future persecution."
When asked about the reasoning for opening up the expedited pathway for the group on Monday, Trump said:
"Whether they are white or Black makes no difference to me, but white farmers are being brutally killed, and their land is being confiscated in South Africa.
"The newspapers and the media, television media, doesn't even talk about it. If it were the other way round, they'd talk about it, that would be the only story they talk about. I don't care who they are. I don't care about their race, their color, I don't care about their height, their weight, I don't care about anything, I just know that what is happening is terrible."
South Africa's Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation, in a press release Friday: "It is most regrettable that it appears that the resettlement of South Africans to the United States under the guise of being 'refugees' is entirely politically motivated and designed to question South Africa's constitutional democracy; a country which has in fact suffered true persecution under Apartheid rule and has worked tirelessly to prevent such levels of discrimination from ever occurring again, including through the entrenchment of rights in our Constitution, which is enforced vigorously through our judicial system.
White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller told reporters Friday: "What's happening in South Africa fits the textbook definition of why the refugee program was created. This is persecution based on a protected characteristic, in this case, race."
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