The first ‘Amerikaners’ leave SA, with Alex Mitchley

The annals of SA/US relations are at a watershed. They’ll historically show that in early May 2025, after a run of public holidays celebrating South Africa’s hard-fought transition to democracy, the first group of Afrikaners took up the Trump Administration’s offer to relocate to the United States as official “refugees”. And they flew out of Gauteng for Virginia with not so much as a song or dance. News24 journalist Alex Mitchley had no luck getting any of them to agree to an interview, but observed the mood and tone of it all: “You did see one or two jovial conversations between different families. There were one or two who, I suppose, understandably, were unhappy with the media attention.But all in all, a far more reserved atmosphere among the group,” says Mitchley in this edition of The Lead. Later in the show, host Graeme Raubenheimer relays how the Finance Minister has rubbished any prospect of taxing the rich more. And finally, SA’s sprinters dominate at China’s World Athletics Relays. Mail your comments and voice notes to thelead@24.com. Editions drop Monday through Thursday at 19:00 on Spotify, Apple and YouTube.