White South Africans Granted Refugee Status In U.S. As Others Face Bans And Backlogs

Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty ImagesBy Melissa Noel ·Updated May 14, 2025A group of 59 white South Africans arrived at Washington Dulles International Airport on Monday afternoon, greeted by U.S. officials as newly admitted refugees.The group—members of the Afrikaner minority, who once ruled South Africa during apartheid—was brought to the U.S. on a State Department-chartered flight and received by Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau and Deputy Homeland Security Se