“If leaving to protect my family makes me a coward, I accept that”
The former Hibberdene resident said his greatest hope is that his children thrive in the USA.
Errol Langton (48) got on a plane two weeks ago and travelled 40 hours to America, or better known, as The Land of Opportunity.
He and his family are part of the group of 59 South Africans who arrived in the USA on May 11 as refugees under a programme initiated by President Donald Trump.
Langton from Hibberdene spent 30 years building a life for his family, including nine years as a self-employed business owner, employing up to 20 people.
But between the escalating crime, collapsing infrastructure, and targeted government policies, he realised he could no longer secure a future for his children and took up Trump’s offer of refugee status in the USA.
“This move is a reset, one made for their sake. If it were just my wife and I, we might have stayed and fought,” he said.
He says he doubts that he would meet Trump, but he says: ‘It would be interesting if I did’.
Langton’s greatest hope is that his children thrive in the country. “We’re willing to do whatever it takes to give them that chance.”
He is currently looking for work in the technology sector, which is his area of expertise.
“I’ve also designed an aquaponics farm, which we hope to start as a side project and eventually scale commercially.”
Langton said the group experienced a ‘mix of emotions’ and many are nervous, uncertain, and overwhelmed.
“The media and online trolls don’t help. But there’s also a strong sense of hope and excitement for what lies ahead.”
When asked about how he felt about President Cyril Ramaphosa’s comment reported in the media: “As South Africans, we are resilient. We don’t run away from our problems. We must stay here and solve our problems. When you run away you are a coward, and that’s a real cowardly act.”
Langton replied: “If leaving to protect my family makes me a coward, I accept that.”
He writes an open letter to Ramaphosa:
Your statement is disingenuous. You know exactly why people are leaving. South Africans are divided because your leadership and the ANC have fostered that division. The country is collapsing under your watch, and you seem indifferent.
This isn’t just about white Afrikaner farmers, it’s about all farmers. The terror that is often labeled as ‘white farm attacks’ affects black farmers even more, yet they have even less of a voice. These are honest, hardworking people who put food on South African tables, and in return they face murder, abuse, and theft. They deserve the same protection, dignity, and recognition. Stop splitting people racially. They are not black or white or anything else – they are South Africans. These labels are designed to keep people in separate camps, and that division serves only those in power.
All South Africans, regardless of race, have seen their quality of life decline under the ANC. No, I don’t long for apartheid, that was despicable. But what’s happening now is also despicable.
You buy votes with handouts while the country’s infrastructure and state-owned entities such as Eskom, Saps, Transnet and SAA crumbles. You’ve enabled corruption, protected the guilty, and failed the people.
I love South Africa. I’ve lived there for 48 years. Leaving was heartbreaking. But I will not return under this leadership.
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