Ramaphosa strenuously objected, explaining to Trump that while some political groups in South Africa have used violent rhetoric about the issue—which stems from the apartheid-era practice of stealing land from Black residents under that nation’s racist laws—his party and the current government are opposed to it.

Trump decried the violent rhetoric and suggested that people using it should be arrested, which stands in contrast to his own repeated usage of violent language against Democrats and his decision to pardon the Trump supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

Undaunted, Trump even argued that white Afrikaner farmers currently face oppression equivalent to what Black South Africans faced under apartheid. Apartheid was enshrined in South African law for roughly 40 years, institutionalizing racial segregation and leading to mass killings tied to political violence.

But even more damning for Trump’s rhetoric is that multiple studies have shown that claims of a “white genocide” in South Africa are false. While the nation has a severe crime problem, the notion that white people there are being persecuted, let alone at the level of persecution Blacks faced during apartheid, is false.

One of the most high-profile promoters of the white-genocide myth is billionaire Elon Musk, who attended the Oval Office meeting with Ramaphosa. Musk is originally from South Africa and grew up during the waning days of apartheid.

Musk’s attendance comes just a few days after he said he would be less financially involved in politics. In the 2024 election cycle, he donated at least $288 million to elect Trump and other Republicans.

Trump has a well-documented history of racism, from his description of countries with large nonwhite populations as “shithole” nations to his promotion of the racist “birther” conspiracy about former President Barack Obama.

With his “white genocide” crusade, Trump is turning a debunked, racist conspiracy into a core American foreign policy.