Afrikaner ‘refugee’ advises SA emigrants: Accept entry-level US jobs

JOHANNESBURG — 1 May 2024

Errol Langton, a Pretoria man who relocated to the United States as a “refugee”, has urged South Africans considering similar moves to accept low-paying jobs and adjust expectations about overseas life.

Langton – formerly an IT business owner and part-time farmer – now works at an Alabama car wash after leaving Johannesburg.

He told US interviewer Chris Wyatt the US Citizenship and Immigration Services provided “starter loans” but stressed newcomers must work hard. “Take what you can get now and work on what you want later. Don’t get here and want the $50-an-hour job; take the $15-an-hour job so that you can get on your feet.” (Langton interview)

His move followed a February executive order by former President Donald Trump granting “refuge” to certain SA minorities over alleged “racial discrimination” claims (unverified).

Langton warned against entitlement: “If you play the victim card, you will not fit in. You will not be a part of society. There is nobody to clean up after you. If you make a mess, you clean it up.”

Recruitment agencies report growing South African emigration to the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand driven by job opportunities in engineering, IT and healthcare sectors (industry reports).

Langton advised aspirant emigrants: “Take the low-paying job to start with… I promise you, in a year’s time, you will be there.”