Family of South Africans Dubbed Refugees by the Federal Government Arrives in Missoula
The International Rescue Committee’s office in Missoula and a local nonprofit are helping the family adjust to life in Montana
By Zeke Lloyd, Montana Free Press
A South African family labeled as refugees by the U.S. Department of State arrived in Missoula on Monday evening, according to a spokesperson for the refugee relief organization International Rescue Committee.
Diana Santana, the spokesperson for IRC, declined to provide any additional information about the family.
The South African migrants underwent an expedited immigration process, the product of an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in February. On Monday morning, U.S. officials from the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security welcomed 59 Afrikaners when their private charter plane landed at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, federal authorities said in news reports.
In February, Trump signed an executive order freezing aid to South Africa over claims that the nation was confiscating land from Afrikaners, white descendants of primarily Dutch colonists. The U.S. State Department has claimed that Afrikaners face violent attacks and property seizure without compensation. Reporting from Al Jazeera, the Associated Press and the Jesuit news outlet America questions those claims.
The Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, a branch of the State Department, also declined to provide additional details about the family in Missoula.
The IRC said it will work to support the family.
“Across the U.S., we serve thousands of newcomers from dozens of countries based on their individual and family needs. Service to these new arrivals would be no different,” Santana wrote in an email to Montana Free Press.
The IRC opened its first office in Missoula in 1979, though it closed a decade later. In 2016, the IRC reopened its Missoula office in partnership with Soft Landing Missoula. The IRC helps refugees with immediate needs, including assistance with the early stages of obtaining citizenship. Soft Landing Missoula provides longer-term support for refugees, like help finding housing, jobs and education.
According to Santana, the IRC has resettled more than 1,000 refugees in Montana, including individuals from Afghanistan, Syria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the last decade. Between October 2024 and January 2025, 57 refugees arrived in Montana.
On January 20, Trump signed a series of immigration-related executive actions, including the suspension of the U.S Refugee Admissions Program, an association of agencies and nonprofits that identify and admit refugees into the United States.
Santana called on the Trump administration to “bring operations for all resettlement processes fully back online and fully restore refugee resettlement.”
“In the midst of a complete suspension of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, the arrival of Afrikaner families shows the value of the refugee resettlement program and how it fits the interests of the U.S. to remain a welcoming nation that provides a lifeline for people seeking safety from violence and persecution,” Santana wrote.
Hilarious. If you're white and racist Republicans give you a pass.