American Church leader refuses to help Afrikaners as they arrive in the US

• The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States, Sean Rowe, has refused to assist Afrikaners to resettle in the United States
• The first group of 49 Afrikaners arrived in the United States on 12 May 2025 after departing from the OR Tambo International Airport on 11 May
• Rowe, in a letter, said that he cannot help Afrikaners settle as refugees while the United States government overlooks other refugees

Tebogo Mokwena, a dedicated Briefly News current affairs journalist, contributed coverage of international and local social issues like health, corruption, education, unemployment, labour, service delivery protests and immigration in South Africa during his seven years at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

UNITED STATES — The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States, Sean Rowe, announced on 12 May 2025 that the church will not help Afrikaners who travelled to the United States to resettle as refugees.

Bishop Sean Rowe refuses to help Afrikaners

Sherwin Bryce-Pease posted Rowe's letter on his @sherwiebp X account. In the letter, Bishop Rowe said that the church's Episcopal Migration Ministries, the church's refugee resettlement ministry, will not assist the Afrikaners who took off from the OR Tambo International Airport on 11 May and landed in Texas the following day. He also said the church will conclude its refugee resettlement grants with the US federal government by the end of the federal fiscal year.

American X user Wu Tang is for the Children posted a video of the Afrikaners arriving in the US on his @WUTang X account.

Watch the X video here:

Rowe slams resettlement of Afrikaners

Rowe said that he watched how the American government gave Afrikaners preferential treatment over other refugees who had been waiting in refugee camps and dangerous conditions for years.

"I am saddened and ashamed that many of the refugees who are being denied entrance to the United States have people who worked alongside our military in Iraq and Afghanistan, and now face danger at home because of their service to our country," he said.

He said no new refugees have arrived in the country after Trump shut down the US Refugee Admissions Program and cut funding for refugees. He blasted the US government for informing the church that it is expected to resettle Afrikaners from South Africa.

Rowe said the church will not take this step because of its commitment to racial justice and reconciliation and historic ties with the Anglican Church of Southern Africa.

Read the X statement here:

What you need to know about the Afrikaner resettlement

• The Department of International Relations and Cooperation engaged with the United States government about the first group of Afrikaners who were to be resettled in the US.
• Wits professor Loren Landau said Afrikaners were using Donald Trump's offer for resettlement as an excuse to live in the United States.
• A United States woman shared a video where she expressed excitement that she would be welcoming Afrikaners.
• International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola rejected claims that Afrikaners were being persecuted and said crime affects South Africans equally.
• President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to have another discussion with Trump to reiterate that the Afrikaners who are in the United States were not persecuted.

US Embassy announces the Refugee Admissions Program

In a related article, Briefly News reported that the United States Embassy in Pretoria launched its refugee admissions programs. The program is meant to help Afrikaners and minority groups resettle in the US as refugees.

The admissions program was opened after 49 Afrikaners left the OR Tambo International Airport on 11 May 2025. It is also open to other groups in the country who believe they are persecuted.

Source: Briefly News