WEEKEND WRAP

Trump migration fallout, anti-foreigner marchers, and DA election moves

This edition of the weekly wrap covers the DA’s election positioning, anti-foreigner marches turning violent, and a US lawsuit alleging higher pay for white South African guest workers. We also look at why Joburg won’t explain its fuel crisis, the hidden story behind Cape Town’s foreign property market, and whether the National Arts Festival is still worth the effort.

By Daily Maverick

26 Jun

US farmer faces legal pushback for paying white SA workers higher wages

Afrikaaner farmers rally to show support for US President Trump in Pretoria — Afrikaans farmers picket in support of an executive order by US President Donald Trump, granting Afrikaners refugee status in the US, outside the US Embassy in Pretoria, South Africa, 15 February 2025. Trump offered Afrikaners refugee status in the wake of a recently implemented land expropriation bill signed into law by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa that may see land being expropriated from farmers in the country. EPA-EFE/KIM LUDBROOK

By Marianne Thamm. Five black American workers are taking a Mississippi farmer to court because they allege he is favouring and paying white South African guest workers higher wages. Read more.

Police look on as anti-foreigner marchers vandalise businesses, join inspections

reitumetse-xenophobia-vandalism — Anti-foreigner marchers demand that documented foreign nationals employed at Boksburg Cash & Carry leave South Africa before 20 June. (Photo: Reitumetse Pilane)

By Reitumetse Pilane. While law enforcement officers escorted anti-foreigner demonstrators through Boksburg, some participants vandalised businesses and demanded immigration inspections. A march leader joined an official inspection that found that all employees of a business had valid documentation. Some demonstrators nevertheless remained unsatisfied. Read more.

Two SA entrepreneurs offer new ways to trim rising grocery bills

By Neesa Moodley. Without leaving your home, you can compare prices and find out where the best buys are. Read more.

DA eyes the polls as Geordin Hill-Lewis makes big moves

P4 DAPowerPlay — DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis. Photo: Gallo Images

By Victoria O’Regan and Daniélle Schaafsma. The changes the DA leader has proposed seem to have one goal: winning back areas it has lost, such as the rural Afrikaans and coloured constituencies, and attracting new ones. Read more.

Joburg silent on extent of fuel crisis after Kenny Kunene reveals JRA fleet grounded

Anna-COJ-fleet — MMC Kenny Kunene said the City of Johannesburg’s liquidity challenges had resulted in the suspension of refuelling services for the JRA fleet from 15 June 2026. (Photo: Gallo Images / OJ Koloti)

By Anna Cox. Johannesburg’s fuel crisis, ignited by MMC Kenny Kunene’s warnings, threatens essential services, raising serious concerns about the City’s financial stability and operational capabilities. Read more.

The hidden story behind Cape Town’s foreign property purchases

becs-ct-foreigners MAIN — Aerial view of Gardens and Vredehoek, Cape Town. (Photo: iStock)

By Rebecca Davis. Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has argued that foreign money touches only the top end of the city’s increasingly unaffordable property market. Daily Maverick scraped Airbnb’s data to test the claim, and found overseas hosts letting modest flats. Read more.

SA can’t offer dying patients palliative care, but it can offer them death

By Daniélle Schaafsma. The class of 1976 had made it very clear what motivated their protest and what they were fighting for. On the 50th anniversary of the uprising, young people in a very different country still want their voices to be heard. Times have changed, but the issues are no less urgent. Read more.

Butter or margarine? A food scientist describes their subtle differences

butter-conversation — (Photo: Joern Haufe/Getty Images)

By Rosemary Trout. A food scientist explains the chemical differences between butter and margarine, revealing how these variations impact baking and flavour profiles. Read more.

Is the National Arts Festival worth the effort?

bain-naf-oped — Afropocalypse was a stand-out at NAF 2025. (Photo: National Arts Festival)

By Keith Bain. Of course it is. It’s more than a festival, it’s where the nation gathers to bare its soul. Read more.

Are you still in love with your air fryer?

A chicken on the rotisserie in my new air fryer oven. (Photo: Tony Jackman)

By Tony Jackman. Our weekly AirFryday feature was launched close to three-and-a-half years ago, in January 2023, when many of us didn’t know these appliances well, and those who did know them used them sparingly, or tentatively. Let’s take stock. Read more.