British authorities said Monday they blocked Hasan Piker, a Turkish American online streamer, and another political commentator from entering the U.K. to speak at public events.
Piker, a liberal political commentator who is frequently critical of U.S. President Donald Trump, Israel and the war in Gaza, has 2.8 million followers on Twitch.
The Home Office said that the electronic travel authorization, or ETA, for Piker and Cenk Uygur, who hosts the “Young Turks” online political talk show and is reportedly Piker’s uncle, were canceled “on the grounds that their presence in the U.K. may not be conducive to the public good.”
“Decisions to refuse or cancel an ETA on these grounds are based solely on an assessment of the potential risk an individual may pose to U.K. society,” the Home Office said.
Piker and Uygur were due to speak at SXSW London, a culture, technology and creativity festival, this month. Uygur was also expected to give a speech at the Oxford Union, the prestigious student debating society.
“A sad state of affairs where obviously the interests of Israel take the highest priority,” Piker said on his YouTube channel.
Uygur said on X that he had been banned “for criticizing Israel. Are we free any more?”
Piker has faced criticism over some of his comments on the Hamas militant group, which is considered a terrorist organization in the U.K. and the U.S., among other countries.
a liberal political commentator who is frequently critical of U.S. President Donald Trump, Israel and the war in Gaza
Liberal shithole doing liberal shithole things.
Shithole country doing shithole things
Shit hole government doing shit hole things, not in my name. Be careful not to lump all of us in with those other wankers, just because I was born here.
Piker, a liberal political commentator
Yes the famously very liberal commentator …
Pffhhh tankie dip shit with a Ferrari is “liberal”. Thx for that laugh
You should probably learn what Liberalism is before making a fool out of yourself.
don’t use words you just learned online, really makes you look like a fucking idiot
“on the grounds that their presence in the U.K. may not be conducive to the public good.”
gutting the NHS, intrusive internet age-verification and spending taxpayer money on building weapons to kill civilians in Palestine, however, are all somehow very conducive to the public good
the UK government cares a lot about the public good
I thought you guys didn’t support terrorists
This Piker in a carnival suit supports terrorists
“Account based in israel” ahh comment
“The public good”
SHUT IT!
So weird how USA pays Israel’s bills but UK is the one putting it’s citizens in prison for speaking against it.
UK seems to be in an all out race to beat the US to full-on Orwellian dystopia. They’ve consistently been about 5-10 years ahead of the US when it comes to spying on citizens for decades now, but that gap does seem to be narrowing a bit.
Banning Israel’s political enemies from travel does put them squarely in the lead, but don’t count out the USians yet! Palantir’s Flock is spreading its wings, after all.
I feel like these other countries are like labs where groups can test out policy and public opinion campaigns there before bringing it usa
It really does feel weird as an American to see a foreign headline from a Western nation and think “yikes, things are bad over there”.
Eh… the USA is bigger and has more people to call this shit out, so the slide towards fascism can’t be as quick.
But the UK is, as a default, a lot more tolerant (or— I thought it was ), so the dynamics of all of this happening is… More complicated?
Seeing this all play out in real time is… Very weird and kind of fascinating
I feel like I’m learning a lot, but I also feel like I’m learning that I know nothing. More than anything, I’m feeling very confused.
Also we are not as centralized as the UK is. The good thing is we are a collection of 50 states with their own governments. The UK is just a collection of England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and a few other places like Isle of Man that I can think of at the top of my head and that’s it.
Keep in mind, though, that the UK is about half the size as the East Coast of the US. It’s not a tiny country.
That is very big!
Landmass it encompasses isn’t exactly small but it doesn’t have as many governments which means draconian policy is easier to implement.
First of all, I just edited that comment about four times in the last minute, so you may want to revisit it….
But you’re also correct. Yet, at the same time, each American state also has its own government, and, in each state, each county and city has its own government.
So, we all very much know how provincial individual individualist governments can be
Anyone who has tried to contest a parking ticket can attest to this
Edit: there are at least 200 to 250 provincial governments overlaps in that map. I just showed you. I really don’t think you’re statement hold up.
UK falling into fascism isn’t likely, but authoritsrianism, sure.
The UK doesn’t have a constitution, nor a constitutional right to freedom of speech. We’re a monarchy and have basically functioned under a family tradition for centuries of selecting the leader of the largest elected party as prime minister, and long may that continue. When government has tried to interfere in democracy, this family has clamped down on it. The constitution of the USA is nothing here.
Removed by mod
With all due respect, the King is a figurehead with zero political influence. He is “head of state” in name only. Unlike, say, a Presidential system like the US or French where the president is elected, political, has HUGE consequences on the nation, heads the government and chooses the leaders of the house. Charlie does absolutely none of that.
Whilst I agree having a monarch is anachronistic in the 21st century, it works with greater impartiality than the “King” of the US. The UK and the other constitutional monarchies are never beholden to the whims of their head of state, unlike that of the major powers, not since Magna Carta and/or The English Civil War. USians seem to think we live in the days of Absolute Monarchs - which is kinda what you guys have.
Oh, I know how limited the power of the English crown is. I just consider any kind of inherited legal power to be an abomination. If you wanted a role like a king, and they were duly elected, even for lifetime terms? I suppose if that was your custom, fine. But it is inherited power, the act of establishing one class of human beings as legally above or superior to another class of human beings to be an insult to the very spirit of humanity. I think simply being a monarch, or one with any kind of inherited title with special legal rights, is a crime against humanity. To believe that you deserve special legal privileges, simply because of who your parents were? That is the height of arrogance. If there were any good monarchs they would renounce their crowns in shame.
Sorry, I consider myself a militant anti-monarchist. That’s just something I believe. The only good monarch is a dead one. No exceptions. They all deserve to have their heads in baskets!
I am anti-monarchist too but the point of the monarch is not were you think it is, not in the 21st century. And I agree with the legal status of anyone above others but in that sense the US president is now literally above the law now. https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/23pdf/23-939_e2pg.pdf
Ok so he can give up power willingly if it’s useless.
You’ve failed to realise that the uselessness is the point
Or just not having one. They seem to be living really good for doing fuck all but being born.
That’s why I like to just refer to him as Chuck. Really gets home the point that at the end of the day, he’s just a dude in a silly hat.
A civilized country wouldn’t allow Israelis to enter.
There are plenty of Israelis who do not support what their government is doing. Should all Americans be banned from traveling based on their leader’s actions?
Yes. No treats for the treatlerites until we get our shit together.
I wouldn’t be sad about it honestly.
Israel is a cancer not a country.
Counterpoint: Countries are fully capable of being cancers. Case in point: Israel.
That is like calling cancer a distinct organism. It is not.
Cancers can be like a separate organism, albeit a parasitic one
The ETA system has been used to shut down commentators before, it was even used to deny entry for a Christian apologist. This censorship of anyone (unless they’re literally advocating violence) is disgusting
Snicker, all this over a failed Nopixel role player who fooled everyone into thinking he is all that. Just nothing but a narcissistic bully.
You judge a person’s character based off of… checks notes their ability to RP on a Nopixel server?
I physically cringed.
I’m OK with this, countries can regulate who comes into their country
US: Only whites can enter now
Eat_Your_Paisley: okay, that’s your prerogative, I have no further opinions about this
I think you need to think a bit harder about the things you believe.
Unfortunately, this child doesn’t have the ability to think critically. This is by design.
Let Palestine know.
When they win the war, set up international recognized borders and a government they can decide who comes in.
Ah yes, the 12 years old logic is surely going to work to convince us.
What an absolutely disgusting statement. Such drivel doesn’t even warrant the responses debunking it.
Yet you did
They did. Hundreds of years ago. Then colonizers and bullies came along and took it all away. People should be able to govern themselves. End of story. Anything else is justifying colonialism and authoritarianism.
It’s bullshit that countries should be able to deny entry to people arbitrarily, but your history is also a bit off. There never was a Palestinian nation state; there weren’t even nation states as we know them today hundreds of years ago (when Palestine was part of the Ottoman Empire, and before that the Mamluk Sultanate).
You are the only one mentionning an independent state. Borders do not have to apply to only independent state either. The term can apply to non-administrative regions, geographic zones, and cultural areas The area that the british took from the ottoman empire was already called Palestine and the original plan was a single entity.
Correct. Anything else is basically saying culture X doesn’t have the exact same constructs or concepts as we do therefore they don’t exist. Tribal lands aren’t technically a nation or a state. Even if they are functionally the same. Pretty handy for the US and Canada. Just came in and took my families home and lands. Slaughtering them. No harm no foul. Should have known to have a nation/state right? State based colonialism is a hell of a drug.
Independent state or not, there certainly was no instance of a “Palestinian” people “govern[ing] themselves” (whatever that may mean - the majority of the world, including Israel/Palestine, has never had anything resembling a democratic government).
The Ottomans themselves were by definition a small dynastic elite that ruled over a multi-ethnic, multilingual empire. They didn’t give a shit about what “Palestinians” thought about the governance of this area except insofar as it suited their own perceived interests.
The Ottomans didn’t officially call this region “Palestine” in its own administrative divisions though that name existed as an unofficial designation for the rough area.
The Sykes-Picot borders were drawn from the rectums of some drunk European aristocrats who barely knew the region. On which sides of those borders people ended up is largely a historical accident.
The borders are already internationally recognized. It is gaza, the west bank and east jerusalem. While they would effictively control the boder if they win against the colonizer. Palestinian right to control their own lands and who enter it exists before it become an independent state.
Sure, but if the standard is consistent and based on legal precedent. All while the UK allows Israelis to enter the UK and spread actual hateful content that actually causes strife.
Obviously good thing, right?
Animals cheering on as their rights, privacy and wealth gets pull from under their feet.
Yeah, I hate freedom of speech and press
Dunno about the other guy but Hasan can fuck right off simply for being an animal abuser.
Wait people actually fell for that? That’s pretty funny
Haha yeah animal abuse so funny
No the funny part is that you believe that.
Of course.
No people falling for hasbara is funny. To be clear, because I feel you might need this clarification, I’m laughing at you
In a sense this will likely be more impactful as a galvanizing force than any speech the two could give at SXSW
