Today’s stories open with a new immigration policy: a refugee ceiling reserved mostly for white South Africans. You can guess how it looks like for the rest. Then, in Las Vegas, we see a California lawmaker’s aide get arrested by ICE.
Xenophobia is still rife in some stories. A Boston student says teenagers shouted racial slurs at her and her mother, and in Washington, a congressman accuses the Education Department of echoing an attack on South Asian students. In good news, South Asian Americans are also the focus of a revived heart bill.
There are other notable moments this week. Zohran Mamdani, New York City’s first Asian and first South Asian mayor, makes multiple policy announcements in three days. Meanwhile, Xi Jinping’s White House summit yields little beyond a new trade deadline. Outside politics, Sony pulls funding from a Hideo Kojima game, and a 6-year-old breaks a world record twice.
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Trump reserves nearly all 2027 refugee slots for white South Africans
The Trump administration intends to admit no more than 17,500 refugees in fiscal 2027, most of them Afrikaners from South Africa. South Africa’s government says it does not persecute them.
Afghans outnumbered every other nationality among refugees admitted in fiscal 2025. However, they stood in the single digits 10 months into fiscal 2026.
What else we’re tracking
ICE detains California lawmaker’s Hong Kong-born aide at Las Vegas airport
Ho Yin Mo anchored a Chinese-language newscast before joining the staff of San Francisco Assemblymember Catherine Stefani. Last week, ICE agents arrested him at a Las Vegas airport. Stefani, who is seeking his release, called him “a valued, legal employee.”
Vietnamese American student in Boston faces online harassment after alleged racist encounter
Carly Nguyen says teenagers in two cars yelled racial slurs at her and her mother as they left UMass Boston. She believes she knows which school they attend. But since she posted the footage, the taunting has not stopped.
Education Department accused of racist ‘dog whistling’ over anti-Asian post
The Department of Education posted an image of a packed football stadium with the words “Make education great again.” U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) said the post seemed to echo a Texas candidate’s recent attack on South Asian students.
Revived bill addresses South Asian Americans' elevated heart disease risk
A revived bipartisan bill would fund heart health programs and address how federal agencies track South Asian Americans. A February study found South Asian men at 45 nearly eight times as likely as white men to have prediabetes.
Mamdani delivers for New Yorkers amid Netanyahu feud
Zohran Mamdani made four announcements in three days, including a $131.5 million settlement for delivery workers and a settlement house that has served Chinatown since 1898. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized him at the U.N.
Trump rolls out the red carpet for Xi with little to show for it
The White House welcomed Xi Jinping with a B-2 flyover and a state dinner. However, the talks produced little beyond a two-month extension of the trade truce. Xi pressed Trump on Taiwan … and a $14 billion arms package for the island stays on hold.
Hideo Kojima says Sony fired him over Zoom without explaining why
Kojima said Sony ended its backing of “Physint” in a mid-June Zoom call without giving a reason. With his Tokyo studio’s future in doubt, he spent about three months searching for a publisher and ended up with a partner he already had.
6-year-old Chinese girl breaks women’s Rubik’s Cube world record twice in 3 days
Lian Yunzhi needed about 90 seconds to solve a Rubik’s Cube when she started at age 4. At 6, the Chengdu native set a women’s world record in Wuhan, then broke it three days later in Guangzhou.
Why read Issue #263?
Issue #263 highlights how ancestry shapes federal policy, and, according to one congressman, federal messaging. Next year’s refugee program would mostly admit white South Africans, and the Education Department faces accusations of echoing a Texas candidate’s attack on South Asian students.
Still, ancestry can also be a reason to help, which is the argument behind a revived heart bill for South Asian Americans. However, that bill has failed before, and Trump has yet to sign the refugee ceiling … so neither is settled. Make sure to check out this issue to stay on top of these matters.
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