With public ban on band Bob Vylan, Trump appears to ease visa privacy rules to make a point

WASHINGTON – When the United States revokes someone's visa, it is typically confidential, with fewer exceptions. But with British punk-rap duo Bob Vylan and others, the Trump medication appears to person eased privateness restrictions to marque a nationalist constituent erstwhile it deems a lawsuit peculiarly egregious.

The State Department’s fig 2 diplomat made headlines erstwhile helium posted a societal media message this week saying visas for the set for an upcoming U.S. circuit had been revoked. British constabulary are investigating whether a transgression was committed erstwhile the duo's frontman led the assemblage successful chants of “Death to the IDF” — the Israel Defense Forces — astatine a euphony festival successful the U.K.

Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau posted that their visas had been revoked “in airy of their hateful tirade astatine Glastonbury, including starring the assemblage successful decease chants.”

The set rejected claims of antisemitism and said successful a connection that it was being “targeted for speaking up” astir the warfare successful Gaza.

Under the Immigration and Nationality Act and definite statutes related to the privateness of authorities documents, the State Department has for years resisted oregon refused to sermon circumstantial cases successful which visas whitethorn person been denied oregon revoked. Certain exemptions apply, specified arsenic erstwhile overseas officials and their contiguous household members are recovered to ineligible for introduction into the United States for violating anti-corruption oregon quality rights regulations.

However, arsenic the Trump medication pursues a nationwide crackdown targeted astatine visa holders it believes person engaged successful antisemitic oregon pro-militant behavior, the modular for releasing once-privileged accusation seems to person been relaxed.

“Foreigners who glorify unit and hatred are not invited visitors to our country,” State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said erstwhile asked astir the nationalist announcement.

She said 1 crushed for announcing the revocations was to marque wide that the medication is superior astir the standards it volition use to visa holders and applicants.

“We’ve been nationalist astir that standard, and this was a precise nationalist lawsuit that violated that precise basal modular astir the quality of who we privation to fto into the country,” Bruce said.

Other caller cases person been little clear-cut, though immoderate person ended up successful nationalist tribunal cases.

Earlier this year, arsenic portion of an inaugural to expel overseas students who are accused by the Trump medication of engaging successful pro-Hamas, anti-Israel oregon antisemitic activity, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said helium had rescinded astatine slightest 300 visas and expected that fig to rise.

Many of those cases were not publicized individually.

One that was: Rumeysa Ozturk, who was detained by migration authorities successful Massachusetts for authoring an sentiment portion criticizing Tufts University for not taking a tougher enactment connected alleged Israeli atrocities successful Gaza.

U.S. officials said astatine the clip that her visa had been revoked due to the fact that of adverse overseas argumentation consequences if she remained successful the United States.

Other high-profile and nationalist cases of visa revocations for governmental reasons day backmost decades, including histrion Charlie Chaplin successful 1952 during the Truman medication and an yet unsuccessful deportation effort against Beatles vocalist John Lennon successful the 1970s.

“The signifier of ideological exclusion has a agelong past successful the United States, having been utilized for decades arsenic a governmental instrumentality to support U.S. audiences from being exposed to dissident viewpoints,” the quality rights radical Amnesty International said successful a 2020 report.

“During the Cold War, successful particular, the U.S. authorities denied visas to immoderate of the world’s starring intellectuals, writers and artists who, the authorities thought, mightiness beforehand Communism oregon different 'subversive' views,” it said.

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