Neil Young ‘may be barred’ from entering U.S. over Trump comments

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Toronto-born musician Neil Young, who is also an American citizen, says he “may be barred” from entering the United States over comments he made about President Donald Trump.

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In a post on his website on Tuesday, the singer-songwriter — who is set to tour in Europe this summer — said, “When I go to play music in Europe, if I talk about Donald J. Trump, I may be one of those returning to America who is barred or put in jail to sleep on a cement floor with an aluminum blanket.”

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He continued: “That’s right folks, if you say anything bad about Trump or his administration, you may be barred from re-entering the USA. If you are Canadian. If you are a dual citizen like me, who knows? We’ll all find that out together.”

This is not the first time Young has criticized Trump. After becoming an American citizen in 2020, he wrote an open letter to Trump, also posted on his website, Billboard reported. He called Trump a “disgrace.” Prior to that, in 2015, Young condemned Trump’s use of his song, Rocking in the Free World, when the then-presidential candidate announced his intention to run, per CNN.

“If the fact that I think Donald Trump is the worst president in the history of our great country could stop me from coming back, what does that say for Freedom? I love America and its people and its music and its culture,” Young’s Tuesday post said.

The post alluded to the recent detainment and deportation of travellers arriving in the United States.

In March, Brown University medical school professor Dr. Rasha Alawieh, who returned to the U.S. after visiting family, was deported to Lebanon, NBC News reported. Although she had a valid visa, she was allegedly detained for nearly two days at the Boston Logan International Airport. Homeland Security alleged that Alawieh admitted to attending the funeral of a Hezbollah leader.

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Also this month, the French government said a researcher was denied entry into the United States after American authorities found messages about Trump on his phone, CNN reported. A spokesperson from Homeland Security called the accusation “blatantly false” and said the researcher was denied entry because he was “in violation of a non-disclosure agreement.”

In a Facebook post on March 19, Alvin Gibbs, a member of British rock band UK Subs, said some of the band’s members were denied entry into the United States. Per The Guardian, the band has been “outspokenly critical” of Trump. Gibbs said he was told that he “didn’t have the right visa for entry.”

Young said that due to the U.S. government’s latest actions, those who “speak out freely” are “now vulnerable.”

He ended the post by saying: “One country, indivisible, with Liberty and Freedom for all. Remember that? I do.”

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