South African Court Strikes Down R40M Bequest to Far-Right Group, Dismissing White Genocide Fears as “Imagined”

Grantland Michael Bray wanted to leave R40m to Boerelegioen, which claims it is resisting “the slaughter of whites”

South Africa’s high court has ruled that fears of a white genocide in the country are “clearly imagined and not real,” invalidating a bequest left to a far-right Afrikaner group by a deceased benefactor who believed the organization would “exterminate every black person in South Africa.”

Grantland Michael Bray, who died in 2022, had earmarked R40 million (£1.7 million) from his estate for Boerelegioen (BL), a self-described “civil defense movement” that claims white South Africans face an impending slaughter. Before his death, Bray had become increasingly paranoid about what he believed to be targeted violence against the white minority, an obsession fueled by online content, according to court testimony.

Judge Rosheni Allie, ruling in favor of an application brought by Bray’s siblings, stated that BL engaged in “fearmongering,” misleading white citizens into believing farm murders signaled a broader genocidal campaign. The judgment, dated February 15, came shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump halted all funding to South Africa, citing alleged human rights violations against the white minority—an assertion echoing claims made by South African-born billionaire Elon Musk.

Some white South Africans have claimed that they are being marginalized and attacked as they appeal for support from the Trump administration

Crime statistics contradict these claims. In 2023, South Africa recorded over 27,000 murders, of which only 49 victims were white farmers or their family members. Nevertheless, Trump pledged to create a plan offering refugee status to Afrikaner farmers, a move supported by groups such as AfriForum, which has actively lobbied U.S. politicians to recognize perceived threats against the Afrikaner minority.

Bray, who had served in the apartheid-era military before an accident left him paralyzed at 26, had reportedly become fixated on white genocide conspiracies in his later years. Despite living in a secure estate in Cape Town, he purchased an additional home in a nearby suburb—without ever visiting it—believing it would be a more strategic location for BL to “rescue” him. His caregivers warned him that BL was manipulating him after senior figures from the group visited him in 2020 and 2021, presenting him with a BL flag and beret.

Although Bray believed he had officially joined the organization and was paying a membership fee, his siblings argued that BL did not recognize him as a full member, as its manifesto states that only individuals of “Boer” blood qualify.

The Boerelegioen claimed it had no ambitions to kill black people

Judge Allie condemned the group’s pro-apartheid rhetoric, stating that its paramilitary-style training, which Bray’s bequest was meant to fund, was illegal. In response to the lawsuit, Boerelegioen RSA (Pty) Ltd and Boerelegioen NPC denied any intent to kill black South Africans, even if that had been Bray’s intention.

The judge ultimately ruled that Bray’s will was too vague regarding which organization he intended to support, invalidating the bequest and ordering that his assets be distributed according to intestate succession. BL was also ordered to cover the legal costs of the case.