US Republicans in South Africa looking for proof of white discrimination

A delegation of Republicans from the United States has arrived in South Africa to gather proof that white, Afrikaans people are being discriminated against.

The New York Young Republican Club (NYYRC), the oldest and largest Republican club in the US, is visiting South Africa on the invitation provided by the South African advocacy group, Lex Libertas, led by Ernst Roets. 

“The NYYRC has expressed concern that South Africa’s decline since 1994 is a warning to all Western nations as to what is in store for the white population once they become a political minority,” Roets posted on social media platform X.

This includes “the end of civil rights, redistributive injustice and a perpetual anarcho-tyranny,” according to the group.

The NYYRC said it is visiting to “study the perils of race-socialism” and to implement follow-up initiatives aimed at “bringing a fuller account of South Africa’s realities to American audiences”, they say. 

Roets is taking the delegation through a comprehensive programme to prove that white Afrikaners are being discriminated against.

This includes meetings with victims of violent crime and farm attacks, and meetings with institutions involved with poverty alleviation initiatives for those who have experienced exclusion under race-based legislation.

The delegation will visit the community of Orania in order to see a “self-reliant and community-driven development model” and visit several historical sights, including the White Cross monument – a collection of white crosses in memorial of those who died in farm killings.

The group will then be taken on a tour of “deteriorating central business districts” as well as “vandalised monuments, informal settlements”, with Roets furthermore showcasing the “natural beauty and geographic diversity of the country.”

preventing the ‘South Africanization’ of the US

Roets said he believes that the visit will allow the US-based group to engage with reality, and not discuss South Africa in abstract or ideological terms. 

“It’s about ensuring that informed voices in the United States understand the complexities of our situation and the importance of sustainable, community-driven solutions,” he said. 

The group is led by its President Stefano Forte, who said the club is here to witness the results of South Africa’s diversity, equity and inclusion policies firsthand.

He arrives in South Africa insistent that white Afrikaners are being persecuted, murdered and barred from society. He said it is important for the NYYRC to visit in order to prevent what is happening in South Africa from happening in the US.

“Make no mistake, the American left’s goal is ultimately the South Africanization of the United States, and our club is here to expose what the consequences of that would be for American people,” said Forte. 

The club has already visited the Paul Kruger statue in Church Square in Tshwane, where Forte said the statue has been fenced off to stop repeated acts of vandalism. 

He said this is “proof that the desire to erase the glories of Western history extends far beyond the United States.”

The delegation’s search for evidence of discrimination comes at a time when US President Donald Trump continues to insist there is a white genocide taking place in South Africa. 

Disputed claims of white genocide

When asked by South African journalist Heidi Giokos what it would take for Trump to drop his claims of a white genocide at the World Economic Forum earlier this year, he responded that: “We have seen the numbers. We have seen the records. It is taking place, and it’s got to be stopped.”

The 1948 Genocide Convention defines it as committing certain acts with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group.

Along with other developments, Trump has cited this to justify measures such as imposing tariffs on South Africa, cutting aid, and supporting refugee applications for Afrikaners in the US.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has frequently responded to Trump’s claims, calling them “blatant misinformation about our country.”

“There is criminality in our country. People who do get killed unfortunately through criminal activity are not only white people, but the majority of them are also black people,” he told Trump during an Oval Office meeting.

South African officials have also denied the allegations, saying that violent crime levels, while unacceptably high, impact all races. 

Africa Check debunked several claims Trump made about a genocide during a May 2025 meeting with Ramaphosa. 

Although violent rural crime is a critical issue plaguing the country, “there is no evidence that white farmers in South Africa are more likely to be murdered than other groups,” wrote Africa Check researcher Keegan Leech.