The #Trump admin is working to bring the first group of #white #SouthAfricans it has classified as *#refugees* to the #UnitedStates early next week, acc/to ofcls briefed on the plans & documents obtained by NYT.

Although Trump halted virtually all other #refugee admissions shortly after he took office in Jan, his admin hastily put together a program to allow in white South Africans, who he claims have been the victims of racial persecution in their country.

#law #immigration #WhiteSupremacy

The #Trump admin plans to send government officials to Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia for an event marking the arrival of the #SouthAfricans, who belong to the #white minority #Afrikaner ethnic group, acc/to the memo from #HHS. The admin initially planned to welcome the #Afrikaners on Monday, but some officials familiar w/the matter cautioned that the plans remained in flux, subject to flight logistics & processing of the group.

#law #immigration #WhiteSupremacy

The arrival of the #Afrikaners would cement #Trump’s efforts to upend a program that for decades has allowed thousands of people fleeing #war, #famine & #NaturalDisaster to find safe haven in the #UnitedStates.

While the program remains suspended for #refugees across the world, such as #Congolese families in #refugee camps & #Rohingya seeking safety, #white #SouthAfricans were processed much faster than is normal for these cases.

#law #immigration #WhiteSupremacy

#Refugees can often wait years in camps around the world before they are processed & approved to travel to the #UnitedStates. Before the first #Trump admin, #refugee resettlement took an average of 18 to 24 months, acc/to the American #Immigration Council, an advocacy group for immigrants. Many refugees must wait years longer.

The #white #Afrikaners, however, had to wait no more than 3 months.

#law #WhiteSupremacy

…#Trump’s support of #Afrikaners dates back to his first term. But this year he came to their side after [#ElonMusk posted about] #SouthAfrica’s president enacted a #law allowing the govt to seize land from private owners w/o providing compensation in rare instances.

Supporters of such measures say they are necessary to undo the vestiges of #colonialism & #apartheid, when the #white-minority govt brutally repressed #Black South Africans & drove them off their land.

#immigration #WhiteSupremacy

#SouthAfrica’s govt has sparred w/ #Trump & his ofcls, saying that they are spreading #misinformation [#disinformation].

Within weeks of announcing that #Afrikaners would be eligible for #refugee status, the admin deployed teams to #Pretoria …to screen #white #SouthAfricans for consideration, acc/to the documents obtained by NYT. The teams studied >8k requests from people expressing interest in becoming #refugees, & the US govt identified 100 Afrikaners who potentially could be approved.

#law

…The #resettlement of #refugees is normally funded in large part by the #State Dept. But #Trump suspended that program….

So the admin will be relying more on another agency that has traditionally supported refugees: a refugee office in #HHS. That office has been reaching out to organizations assisting the #white refugees in recent days to prepare them for the arrival of the #Afrikaners, according to a department memo obtained by NYT.

#law #immigration #WhiteSupremacy