Afrikaners flee, sprinters shine

A group of people left for the US as refugees on the same day our athletes embodied unity and resilience

- Tim Cohen

The sight of 49 Afrikaner (one assumes) farmers (one assumes) boarding a US government-chartered jet to take up refugee status in the US left me with complicated and conflictual feelings.

Are we meant to feel sorry for these departees, or should we envy them? It's a terrible thing to feel you have no choice but to leave your country. But can you really pity people for seeing an opportunity and grasping it?

This is the first group to arrive in the US after being vetted by the US embassy in South Africa following US President Donald Trump's executive order to resettle these Afrikaner “refugees” who have been “victims of unjust racial discrimination”.

As many have pointed out, calling white South Africans refugees because they are discriminated against in the new South Africa is an insult to history. Are they uncomfortable about living in South Africa because of discrimination, or do they just not feel comfortable sharing their space with people of different races? If it’s the former, good luck to them. If it’s the latter, goodbye to them.