When apartheid crushed black lives, Donald Trump was silent , Why speak only for the Boers now?

As the diplomatic tension between Washington and Pretoria deepens, Africa must pause and reflect on a critical historical truth. During the darkest days of apartheid, Donald J. Trump never said a single word in defence of black South Africans. Now, decades later, he suddenly presents himself as a champion of the "Boer," loudly claiming that white farmers are being "massacred." The contradiction is impossible to ignore.

Trump's Age During Apartheid, Old Enough to Speak, Old Enough to Know Better

Donald Trump was born in 1946.
Apartheid formally began in 1948.
He grew up, studied, worked and built his wealth throughout the decades when black South Africans were being oppressed, banned, tortured, displaced and murdered.

Consider these key periods:
 - 1960 Sharpeville Massacre: Trump was 14 years old, old enough to understand global events.
 - 1976 Soweto Uprising: Trump was 30, a fully grown adult building his business career.
 - 1980s State of Emergency: Trump was in his late 30s to early 40s, a wealthy, influential public figure in New York.
 - 1990 Mandela's Release: Trump was 43 - already a well-known businessman whose statements carried weight.

Throughout these decades, when the world was mobilising against apartheid from the UN, to the Commonwealth, to global activist movements Trump said nothing. He never criticised apartheid. He never challenged racial segregation in South Africa. He never called for sanctions or supported the freedom struggle.

In short, he was old enough to take a stand but chose silence.

A Silence That Cannot Be Ignored
The record is clear:
 - Trump did not condemn apartheid at any stage of his adult life.
 - He did not stand with the oppressed black majority.
 - He did not challenge the brutality meted out by the apartheid government.
 - He did not support Nelson Mandela or the liberation movement.

While millions of black people were denied basic human rights, Trump was already a prominent businessman with access to the media and global platforms, yet he remained completely silent.


Why Speak Only Now And Only for the Boers?

Fast-forward to 2025. Trump loudly positions himself as the protector of white South Africans, claiming they face a "genocide." This claim has been debunked repeatedly by independent international agencies and journalists. Crime in South Africa affects all races, and black South Africans remain the largest group of victims.

So why this sudden concern? Why this selective moral outrage? It is impossible to escape the conclusion that Trump's new-found "human rights" activism for white farmers aligns neatly with the racial politics of his American voter base. Advocating for "white victimhood" abroad feeds into the narrative he promotes at home.

Yet the irony is staggering, he finds his voice now not for the millions who suffered under apartheid, but for the minority that historically benefited from it.

Apartheid's Victims Deserve More Respect Than Silence. Black South Africans endured:
 - Massacres
 - Forced removals
 - Detentions without trial
 - Torture
 - Economic exclusion
 - Daily humiliation
 - Bans on political organising
 - Generational poverty engineered by law

These crimes were not hidden. The world knew and many leaders spoke loudly. Trump was an adult who witnessed all of this unfolding in real time, yet he never raised a finger or a voice.

To now portray himself as a moral guardian in South Africa is not only disingenuous, it is deeply insulting to the memory of apartheid's victims.

Africa Must Respond With Clarity. Zimbabwe, South Africa and the continent at large have a responsibility to defend historical truth. The suffering of black people under apartheid is not a footnote that can be erased by American politicians with short memories and louder microphones.

If Donald Trump wants to speak about justice in South Africa, he must answer one question:
Where was his voice when black people were being brutalised under apartheid, during the decades he was fully grown and fully capable of speaking out?

Until he can answer that, his sudden passion for "protecting" Boers will remain hollow, questionable and politically motivated.

Jacob Kudzayi Mutisi
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