Save the White People
Posted: Tue May 13, 2025 12:51 pm
Trump once again showed who he is. While millions in the world starve or face violence every day, Trump reached down to the Afrikaners, white South Africans of Dutch descent, to fast-track them into the United States and full citizenship. He claims, without any real evidence, that they are being "persecuted" and facing "genocide."
The racism of Donald Trump's actions is pretty clear. The claim that Afrikaners are facing genocide is popular among far-right groups and is roundly criticized in this country and South Africa. One of the main grievances white South Africans have is that the government passed a law facilitating the expropriation of land so that property can black South Africans, who comprise 82% of the population but own 4% of the land, can have greater access to land ownership. Whites, who comprise just 7% of the population, own the lion's share of South African land.
Under the new land expropriation law, land can be seized without compensation if the property is not being used and there is no intention to either develop or make money from it, or if it poses a risk to others. See https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg9w4n6gp5o The disparity in land ownership is a result of the European colonization of South African land over the centuries. In the 20th century, the 1913 Native Lands Act limited black ownership of land to just 7% of the country. The majority of South African land was allotted to whites. See https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/20/africa/s ... eform-intl Naturally, black South Africans feel that post-apartheid progress has been too slow, with only 4% of land in black ownership.
This is the persecution in the eyes of right-wing groups and President Trump--that the government could seize land that is not being used or that poses a risk to others. Keep in mind that governments in the US regularly use what is called eminent domain to seize property, and, in fact, the courts have expanded the government's power to do so regularly. The most recent decision finding in favor of the government occurred in 2005. While it is true that the government in question must compensate the owner, the idea of what compensation is just is often contested, since governments frequently pay less than what others would consider a fair price.
Many people around the globe are fleeing immediate threats to their lives. They are starving. They are in war zones. They are victims of out-of-control criminal gangs. But Trump has stopped helping these people. Instead, he ostentatiously picks out a relatively privileged group of white South Africans, pays to bring them here, and puts them on a fast-track to citizenship in the USA. It boggles the mind. The racism is obvious.
There is a principle of economic theory called revealed preference. According to this theory, consumers reveal their true preferences in what they actually purchase, as opposed to what they claim to prefer. Trust the purchase, not the verbiage. If we apply this theory to Trump's decision to stop granting asylum to thousands of POCs in order to pay to bring relatively privileged white South Africans to the US and grant these same people citizenship expeditiously, then the revealed preference is clear: Trump is strongly biased in favor of white people and against POCs.
South African racists seem to understand they have a friend in a racist Trump. White Afrikaner separatists of the Karoo region have even come to the US seeking recognition as an autonomous entity. Three thousand white Afrikaners live in Orania, a whites only, separatist enclave. They want financial support from the Trump administration. And it is not just the people of Orania who are seeking out Trump and the MAGA GOP. Other Afrikaner nationalist groups have been visiting with GOP leaders to build alliances with them. See https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/so ... 025-04-03/
The racism of Donald Trump's actions is pretty clear. The claim that Afrikaners are facing genocide is popular among far-right groups and is roundly criticized in this country and South Africa. One of the main grievances white South Africans have is that the government passed a law facilitating the expropriation of land so that property can black South Africans, who comprise 82% of the population but own 4% of the land, can have greater access to land ownership. Whites, who comprise just 7% of the population, own the lion's share of South African land.
Under the new land expropriation law, land can be seized without compensation if the property is not being used and there is no intention to either develop or make money from it, or if it poses a risk to others. See https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg9w4n6gp5o The disparity in land ownership is a result of the European colonization of South African land over the centuries. In the 20th century, the 1913 Native Lands Act limited black ownership of land to just 7% of the country. The majority of South African land was allotted to whites. See https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/20/africa/s ... eform-intl Naturally, black South Africans feel that post-apartheid progress has been too slow, with only 4% of land in black ownership.
This is the persecution in the eyes of right-wing groups and President Trump--that the government could seize land that is not being used or that poses a risk to others. Keep in mind that governments in the US regularly use what is called eminent domain to seize property, and, in fact, the courts have expanded the government's power to do so regularly. The most recent decision finding in favor of the government occurred in 2005. While it is true that the government in question must compensate the owner, the idea of what compensation is just is often contested, since governments frequently pay less than what others would consider a fair price.
Many people around the globe are fleeing immediate threats to their lives. They are starving. They are in war zones. They are victims of out-of-control criminal gangs. But Trump has stopped helping these people. Instead, he ostentatiously picks out a relatively privileged group of white South Africans, pays to bring them here, and puts them on a fast-track to citizenship in the USA. It boggles the mind. The racism is obvious.
There is a principle of economic theory called revealed preference. According to this theory, consumers reveal their true preferences in what they actually purchase, as opposed to what they claim to prefer. Trust the purchase, not the verbiage. If we apply this theory to Trump's decision to stop granting asylum to thousands of POCs in order to pay to bring relatively privileged white South Africans to the US and grant these same people citizenship expeditiously, then the revealed preference is clear: Trump is strongly biased in favor of white people and against POCs.
South African racists seem to understand they have a friend in a racist Trump. White Afrikaner separatists of the Karoo region have even come to the US seeking recognition as an autonomous entity. Three thousand white Afrikaners live in Orania, a whites only, separatist enclave. They want financial support from the Trump administration. And it is not just the people of Orania who are seeking out Trump and the MAGA GOP. Other Afrikaner nationalist groups have been visiting with GOP leaders to build alliances with them. See https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/so ... 025-04-03/