Trump is bringing white South Africans to the US as refugees, but what persecution are they facing?

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — The Trump administration is bringing a small number of white South Africans to the United States as refugees next week in what it says is the start of a larger relocation effort for a minority group who are being persecuted by their Black-led government because of their race.

The South Africans' applications are being fast-tracked by the U.S. after President Donald Trump announced the relocation program in February.

The Trump administration has taken an anti-migrant stance, suspending refugee programs and halting arrivals from other parts of the world, including Iraq, Afghanistan and most countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Refugee groups have questioned why some white South Africans are being prioritized.

The South African government said the U.S. allegations that the white minority Afrikaners in question are being persecuted are “completely false,” the result of misinformation and an inaccurate view of its country. It cited the fact that Afrikaners are among the richest and most successful people in the country, and said they are amongst “the most economically privileged.”

Afrikaners are the descendants of mainly Dutch and French colonial settlers who first came to South Africa in the 17th century. There are around 2.7 million Afrikaners among South Africa's population of 62 million, which is more than 80% Black. Many in South Africa are puzzled by claims that Afrikaners are persecuted and meet the requirements to be refugees.

Afrikaners are part of South Africa’s everyday multi-racial life: many are successful business leaders and some serve in government as Cabinet ministers and deputy ministers. Their language is widely spoken — including by non-Afrikaners — and is recognized as an official language, and churches and other institutions reflecting Afrikaner culture hold prominence in almost every city and town.

So what persecution is the U.S. alleging?

Trump and his South African-born adviser Elon Musk have accused the South African government of having racist anti-white laws and policies, but the claims of persecution center on a relatively small number of violent farm attacks and robberies on white people in rural communities.

The U.S. alleges those attacks are racially motivated and the South African government is “fueling” them by allowing anti-white rhetoric from some political parties not in government and not doing enough to protect rural Afrikaner communities. The government strongly denies that and has condemned the farm attacks, but says their cause is being deliberately mischaracterized.

Violent attacks on farm owners in South Africa have been a problem for years but represent a small percentage of the country's extremely high violent crime rates, which affect all races. The government says there is no targeting of white people in South Africa and no persecution, and farm attacks are part of its struggles with violent crime.

An Afrikaner group called AfriForum records farm attacks and said there were 49 farm homicides in South Africa in 2023. Those are set against a total of more than 20,000 homicides in South Africa a year. Experts say rural communities are susceptible to crime because of their remoteness and less police presence, but Black farm owners and workers are also killed in violent robberies.

Still, many rural white communities have long expressed fear at the threat of violence and feel authorities are not doing enough to protect them. Those claims appear to be part of the requirements to claim refugee status in the U.S., although no details of the application process have been announced.

The Trump administration has also criticized South Africa's affirmative action policies as racist against whites and has falsely claimed white South Africans are having their land taken away by the government under a new expropriation law that promotes “racially discriminatory property confiscation.” No land has been expropriated, but Afrikaners who make up many rural communities have raised fears that their land might be targeted.

South Africa does have laws designed to advance employment opportunities for Blacks, and many white South Africans and white-led political parties have also criticized them and called them racist and counter-productive.

Some Afrikaner groups say the employment, land and other laws are designed to limit their opportunities in South Africa.

Afrikaners were at the heart of South Africa's previous apartheid system of white minority rule and there is a sentiment among some that they and their culture are being targeted in a kind of reverse racism by the Black-led government as punishment for that. The government denies that.

Afrikaners make up just some of South Africa's approximately 4.5 million white people, which also include those who have British and other heritage.

But the Trump administration's refugee program only offers relocation to Afrikaners, who are largely seen as holding conservative and Christian values that might align with the politics of the Trump administration.

It's not clear how many Afrikaners have applied for or been granted refugee status, but a U.S.-based South African business group has said it had a list of tens of thousands who had expressed interest.

U.S. officials and a document obtained by The Associated Press said a first group of more than two dozen Afrikaners from around four families will arrive Monday at Dulles International Airport outside Washington.

Associated Press writer Michelle Gumede in Johannesburg contributed to this report.

More news on South Africa: https://apnews.com/hub/south-africa

Dewet Ungerer, AfriForum coordinator, patrols a road during a neighborhood and farm security watch operation in the east of Pretoria, South Africa, Thursday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Alet Pretorius)

Members of Afriforum, a neighborhood and farm security group, assemble before a patrol in Bashewa area in the east of Pretoria, South Africa, Thursday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Alet Pretorius)

Members of Afriforum, a neighborhood and farm security group, assemble before a patrol in Bashewa area in the east of Pretoria, South Africa, Thursday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Alet Pretorius)

FILE - White South Africans demonstrate in support of U.S. President Donald Trump in front of the U.S. embassy in Pretoria, South Africa, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay, File)

NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart delivered another quarter of impressive sales with speedy deliveries and low prices becoming a strong magnet for people across the income spectrum that are spending more on almost everything, particularly gasoline.

Yet like other major retailers posting financial results this week, Walmart was cautious about the rest of the year given the current economic uncertainty. On Thursday, it issued a forecast for the current quarter that was weaker than what Wall Street had been expecting.

Shares slipped about 7% Thursday.

Walmart has resonated with many Americans who are increasingly careful about where they spend their money as inflation takes a bigger bite out of paychecks, notably gasoline which has soared since the start of the Iran war in late February. Walmart can serve as a barometer of consumer spending given its vast customer base. More than 150 million customers are on its website or in its stores every week, according to Walmart.

One telling shift during the quarter that captures the stress many Americans are feeling: The number of gallons that customers put in their cars during visits to U.S. Walmart and Sam’s Club gas stations fell below 10 for the first time since 2022, which was the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“That’s an indication of stress,” said Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey.

Walmart touted strong sales that were fueled by online shopping on Thursday.

Comparable sales at U.S. Walmart stores rose 4.1% during the three-month period ended April 30. Walmart’s U.S online sales rose 26%, the company said.

Walmart’s promise of lower prices, faster delivery and a refresh of its merchandise has attracted wealthier shoppers. The biggest gains in market share for Walmart are coming from households with annual income over $100,000. That shift is taking place as lower-income shoppers become more entrenched in what economists collectively call a K-shaped economy.

“We see with our customers that the high-income customer is spending with confidence into many categories, while the lower income consumer is more budget conscious and perhaps navigating financial distress,” Rainey told analysts on Thursday.

Rainey told analysts that higher fuel prices took a bite out of profits as it was forced to absorb higher transportation costs. And while the company is focused on offering low prices, Walmart may raise prices later if fuel costs remain high, he said.

U.S. retailers have spent months navigating an uncertain economic environment, from President Donald Trump’s tariffs to the impact of soaring gasoline prices due to the war. The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline raced higher this week and did so again overnight. Gasoline prices are about 45% above where they were at this time last year.

Based on quarterly financial reports from Walmart, Target, Home Depot, Lowe's and TJX, shoppers are cautious but still spending, helped by more generous tax refunds. Yet there is a widespread belief among economists that once those refunds dry up, shoppers will pull back on spending. Consumer spending is the dominant economic engine for the U.S., and retreat would have broad implications for the U.S.

Target reported the largest jump in comparable sales in four years Wednesday, but a cautious outlook overshadowed rather convincing evidence that changes under the company’s new CEO are landing solidly with customers. Target raised its annual revenue outlook Wednesday, but it was still below the pace of its first quarter this year.

The nation’s two largest home improvement retailers Home Depot and Lowe’s reported strong sales, but both companies said that customers are putting off larger home projects.

“I think, overall, this has been the most difficult housing market that I’ve faced in this business since the financial crisis,” Lowe’s CEO Marvin Ellison said this week.

Walmart, based in Bentonville, Arkansas reported first-quarter earnings of $5.33 billion, or 67 cents, for the quarter ended April 30. Adjusted per-share results were 66 cents, matching the 66 cents that analysts expected, according to FactSet.

For the year-ago quarter, the company reported net income of $4.48 billion, or 56 cents per share.

Sales rose 7.3% to $177.75 billion in the fiscal first quarter, above the $174.84 billion that analysts predicted.

Walmart said higher fuel prices took a bite out of profits as it was forced to absorb higher transportation costs.

The company highlighted its speedier deliveries, which is driving more shoppers to buy more often. Rainey said that roughly 60% of U.S. online deliveries arrive at customers' homes in 30 minutes or less.

For the second quarter, Walmart expects sales to be 4% to 5% higher than the same period a year ago. It also expects per-share profit to be between 72 cents and 74 cents. Analysts had been projecting per-share earns of 75 cents on sales of $186.2 billion, according to FactSet.

Walmart stuck to the annual guidance that it issued in February.

Drones operated by Zipline leave base to make deliveries from a Walmart store in Pea Ridge, Ark., Friday, Sept. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)