Trump Administration Plans to Slash Refugee Admissions to Record Low, Favoring White Afrikaners

The Trump administration plans to drastically cut refugee admissions to a record low level, reserving a significant number of slots for white Afrikaners from South Africa and others deemed to be facing unjust discrimination. The new ceiling on refugee admissions would be set at 7,500, a drastic decrease from the cap of 125,000 set by the Biden administration last year. This decision is expected to effectively shut the door to thousands of families waiting in camps around the world and refocus a program meant to provide sanctuary for those fleeing war and famine on mostly white South Africans.

Key Takeaways:

• The Trump administration plans to slash refugee admissions to a record low level of 7,500 in the upcoming year, a drastic decrease from the cap of 125,000 set by the Biden administration last year.
• The new limit would reserve a significant number of slots for white Afrikaners from South Africa and others deemed to be facing unjust discrimination.
• The refugee program, meant to provide sanctuary for those fleeing war and famine, would effectively be shut to thousands of families waiting in camps around the world.
• The new ceiling would be half the previous record low of 15,000 slots set by Mr. Trump in 2020.
• In the 2024 fiscal year, the United States resettled roughly 100,000 refugees for the first time in more than a decade.
• The administration has argued that the program needs to be upended to align with the national interests of the United States, but critics say it is eroding America's global standing by turning its back on the most vulnerable.
• Mark Hetfield, the president of HIAS, a Jewish resettlement agency, said the administration was eroding America's global standing by turning its back on the most vulnerable.
• Dozens of Afrikaner refugees from South Africa have arrived in the United States since Mr. Trump suspended the program, with more expected to follow.
• Thousands of other refugees who were in the process of being welcomed to the United States remain stuck overseas, including 130,000 conditionally approved refugees and 14,000 Iranian religious minorities.

Statistics:

• 7,500: the new ceiling on refugee admissions set by the Trump administration
• 125,000: the cap on refugee admissions set by the Biden administration last year
• 15,000: the previous record low of slots set by Mr. Trump in 2020
• 100,000: the number of refugees resettled in the 2024 fiscal year
• 14,000: the number of Iranian religious minorities registered to come to the United States but stuck overseas
• 130,000: the number of conditionally approved refugees stuck overseas

Sources:

• The New York Times
• Presidential determination dated Sept. 30 and signed by Mr. Trump
• A White House official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the unannounced plans for the refugee program
• Mark Hetfield, the president of HIAS, a Jewish resettlement agency
• Police statistics from South Africa
• The government database
• Officials working with refugee organizations