Kanye West's Visa To Enter Australia Was Cancelled After Releasing Antisemitic Song
"We don't need that in Australia," said federal Immigration Minister Tony Burke.
Ye (Source: YouTube)
Ye—formerly known as Kanye West—has had a “lower level” visa to enter Australia denied following the release of his antisemitic song, Heil Hitler, in May.
Federal Immigration Minister Tony Burke revealed the news on Wednesday’s edition of ABC’s Afternoon Briefing (2 July). The news arrived during a conversation about the reported visa cancellation of the Israeli-American tech advocate, Hillel Fuld, for alleged Islamophobic comments.
Burke shared that Ye, who is married to an Australian woman, Bianca Censori, had a valid visa cancelled following the release of Heil Hitler, which features lyrics about how Ye “became a Nazi.”
“He’s made a lot of offensive comments that my officials looked at again once he released [that] song,” Burke said.
“He’s got family here … It wasn’t a visa for the purpose of concerts. It was a lower-level [visa], and the officials still looked at the law and said if you’re going to have a song and promote that sort of Nazism, we don’t need that in Australia.”
Adding that there isn’t currently a permanent ban on Ye, a rapper and entrepreneur, Burke noted that visa applications are reassessed each time one applies in accordance with the law.
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Burke explained, “I’m not taking away the way the act operates, but even for the lowest level of visa, when my officials looked at it, they cancelled that following the announcement of that song.
“We have enough problems in this country already without deliberately importing bigotry.”
In early 2023, the Anti-Defamation Commission’s Dr Dvir Abramovich called for Ye’s visa to be denied based on his antisemitic comments posted on social media. Then-opposition leader Peter Dutton also supported the call not to allow Ye entry to the country.
“His antisemitic comments are disgraceful, his conduct and his behaviour is appalling, and he’s not a person of good character,” Dutton said. “The minister has the ability to stop somebody coming into our country of bad character.
“So, the minister’s got a lot to weigh up, but I must say my instinct would be if I was that decision-maker, I think there are better people we could welcome in.”
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