On the Media: Why Trump is Welcoming White South Africans as Refugees. Plus, Ep 2 of The Divided Dial

Release Date: May 16, 2025

Hosts: Michael Olinger and Carolyn Holmes
Producer: WNYC Studios

1. Trump Administration Grants Refugee Status to White South Africans

A. Arrival and Background

The episode opens with Michael Olinger announcing the arrival of the first group of Afrikaners—white South Africans—granted refugee status by the Trump administration. On May 16, 2025, 49 Afrikaners landed in the United States, sparking international controversy and domestic repercussions in South Africa.

Carolyn Holmes provides context, explaining that these groups initially sought international attention and sanctions against South African policies, not refugee status. She analogizes their unintended success:

“These groups are sort of like a dog that caught a car, but they caught the car that they weren't chasing.”
[00:23]

B. Government Perspective and Policies

Christopher Landau, Deputy Secretary of State, addressed BBC queries regarding the selective refugee admissions:

“The criteria are making sure that refugees did not pose any challenge to our national security and that they could be assimilated easily into our country.”
[01:32]

Despite thorough vetting, one Afrikaner refugee posted anti-Semitic content on social media, challenging recent Department of Homeland Security policies aimed at preventing such individuals from gaining entry. Landau emphasized the urgency of the situation:

“It's a genocide that's taking place that you people don't want to write about.”
[02:31]

President Donald Trump underscored the severity of threats against white farmers in South Africa, linking their plight to a broader narrative of racial persecution:

“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.”
[02:34]

C. The White Genocide Narrative

The Trump administration's support amplified the white genocide narrative, a claim that white South African farmers were being systematically exterminated. Carolyn Holmes, a political science professor, debunks this myth by highlighting the low numbers of white farmer deaths compared to overall violent crime in South Africa:

“Full-time residents of commercial farms, regardless of race, are actually statistically significantly less likely to experience violent crime than their urban and peri-urban counterparts in South Africa.”
[04:24]

Holmes identifies several Afrikaner advocacy groups—including Afriforum and the Orania Movement—responsible for perpetuating these exaggerated claims through selective statistics and sympathetic storytelling.

One provocative example involves the Xhosa anti-apartheid song “Dubula Bunu” (“Shoot the Boer”), which Afrikaner groups have used to suggest incitement to violence against white farmers. Although initially ruled as hate speech, this determination was overturned in 2022, allowing continued dissemination:

“This is not misinformation in the way that we've traditionally thought about it... the story has become so real that it has resulted in 49 people leaving their home and coming to Texas.”
[04:31]

D. Afrikaner Groups and U.S. Politics

Afrikaner groups capitalized on the Trump administration's openness to gain international attention. In 2018, Afriforum successfully met with key political figures and secured media spots, including a significant appearance on Tucker Carlson's show. Christopher Landau remarked:

“Well, now to a fascinating and significant story the media have all but ignored... being brutally killed and their land being confiscated in South Africa.”
[08:48]

However, these groups never intended to become refugees, leading to internal conflict once their unexpected objective was achieved. Callie Creel, a leader of Afriforum, clarified their true intentions:

“Afrikaners, let me be clear, cannot survive as a cultural community in the US or any other country. What they want is more power in South Africa.”
[10:24]

E. Cross-Pollination of Racist Ideologies

The term white genocide resonates more with American white supremacist ideologies, akin to the great replacement theory prevalent in the U.S. This cross-pollination has deep historical roots, with both South Africa and the United States sharing epochs of racial segregation and white supremacist policies. Holmes draws parallels between Jim Crow-era laws and South Africa's apartheid legislation:

“We need to establish legitimacy in South Africa... They were trying to get attention... They were never trying to get refugee status.”
[14:43]

2. The Divided Dial: The Rise of the Militia Movement via Shortwave Radio

A. Early Days of Militias on Shortwave

The second segment of the episode delves into the origins of the modern American militia movement, tracing its roots back to the early 1990s with the use of shortwave radio as a primary communication tool. Brad Hefner recounts how Radio for Peace International inadvertently became a hub for emerging far-right militias:

“We were really shocked to us.”
[04:01]

Katie Thornton, the host of "The Divided Dial," narrates the transformation of shortwave radio from a utopian global communication medium to a breeding ground for extremist ideologies. She highlights the efforts of broadcasters like Tom Valentine and Mark Kornke in spreading anti-government rhetoric:

“Shortwave would be the movement's medium of choice and that would have big consequences.”
[33:47]

B. The Rocky Mountain Rendezvous

A pivotal moment occurred in 1992 at Ruby Ridge, Idaho, where the deadly standoff between Randy Weaver and federal marshals galvanized various right-wing factions. Pastor Pete Peters organized the Rocky Mountain Rendezvous, uniting disparate groups under a common anti-government and white supremacist agenda:

“We might not be able to agree on [individual beliefs], but by the God of Abraham, we agree.”
[32:23]

This gathering marked a significant consolidation of the militia movement, setting the stage for the heightened use of shortwave radio to disseminate extremist messages.

C. Influence of Shortwave Hosts

Shortwave radio hosts like Kurt Saxon provided explicit instructions for violent actions, inadvertently laying the groundwork for events like the Oklahoma City bombing. Clips from Saxon’s broadcasts revealed detailed bomb-making techniques:

“All you got to do is point it in the general area and whoever comes through that door is dead.”
[35:54]

After the bombing, Brad Hefner and James Latham leveraged their shortwave monitoring to inform the mainstream media about the militia threat, leading to significant coverage and government attention.

D. Transition to the Internet

As the internet emerged, many shortwave hosts migrated online, drawing from their established bases to build more extensive and accessible platforms. Despite the decline of shortwave radio, the foundational work laid by these early broadcasters facilitated the rise of online extremist communities. Brad Hefner notes:

“People promoting peace can have a forum at the library... But this is a medium where they could spread their message and get the word out to their followers.”
[46:45]

E. Legacy and Continuing Impact

Even as shortwave radio faded, its influence persisted through the advanced organizational capabilities of online platforms. The practice of anonymous and unfettered communication enabled by shortwave laid the groundwork for today's digital extremist networks.

Conclusion

This episode of "On the Media" meticulously unpacks the interplay between government policies, media narratives, and extremist movements. From the Trump administration's controversial refugee policy towards white South Africans to the historical evolution of the American militia movement via shortwave radio, the discussions shed light on how media can shape and be shaped by political agendas and extremist ideologies.

Notable Quotes:

• Christopher Landau:
  “The criteria are making sure that refugees did not pose any challenge to our national security and that they could be assimilated easily into our country.”
  [01:32]

• Carolyn Holmes:
  “These activist communities have foregrounded this idea of white victimization by picking out a very small number of stories and continually focusing on them.”
  [04:01]

• Callie Creel (Afriforum):
  “Afrikaners, let me be clear, cannot survive as a cultural community in the US or any other country.”
  [10:24]

• Katie Thornton:
  “Shortwave would be the movement's medium of choice and that would have big consequences.”
  [33:47]

• Brad Hefner:
  “People promoting peace can have a forum at the library... But this is a medium where they could spread their message and get the word out to their followers.”
  [46:45]

Produced by: Molly Rosen, Rebecca Clark Callender, and Candice Wong
Senior Producer: Eloise Blondio
Executive Producer: Katya Rogers
Music and Sound Design: Jared Paul
Technical Director: Jennifer Munson
Fact-Checking: Graham Hacha

On the Media is a production of WNYC Studios.