President Donald Trump is doubling down on claims that White South African farmers are victims of genocide—and says the U.S. is opening its doors to them.
Speaking at the White House on Monday, Trump said the U.S. is letting White South Africans in as refugees because of what he called a “genocide that’s taking place.”
“Because they’re being killed, and we don’t want to see people be killed,” Trump told reporters.
He added, “Farmers are being killed. They happen to be White. But whether they’re white or Black makes no difference to me; but White farmers are being brutally killed and their land is being confiscated in South Africa, and the newspapers and the media, television media doesn’t even talk about it. If it were the other way around, they talk about it. That would be the only story they talk about.”
Trump said South African leaders are set to meet with him soon and warned the issue must be addressed.
“I don’t know how we can go unless that situation’s taken care of. But it’s a genocide that’s taking place that you people don’t want to write about, but it’s a terrible thing that’s taking place.”
Trump also said he didn’t care about the farmers’ race, but that the violence they face is real.
“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’s happening is terrible. I have people that live in South Africa. They say it’s a terrible situation taking place.”
According to The New York Times, a U.S.-funded flight carrying dozens of White South African families landed in the U.S. from Johannesburg the day before Trump’s comments. The families on board claimed they had faced job discrimination and violent attacks in South Africa because of their race.
Trump first signed an executive order in February to allow Afrikaner refugees to resettle in the U.S., fast-tracking their applications.
He said the U.S. has “essentially extended citizenship” to the South African farmers so they can escape what he described as violence and persecution.
Trump’s claim of “genocide” has been widely debunked, with no evidence to support it—yet he continues to repeat it. “They’re being killed,” he said again. “We don’t want to see people be killed.”
Watch the clip below:
REPORTER: Why are you creating an expedited path into the country for Afrikaners but not others?
TRUMP: 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. pic.twitter.com/8LV3VmZ296
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 12, 2025
