Far-right political commentator Candace Owens has described the decision to expel her from Australia as “a petty act of vandalism”.
Immigration Minister Tony Burke canceled the Conservative’s visa this weekend, preventing her from holding five planned live speaking events next month.
Owens, who rose to fame during the Trump presidency, has sparked outrage for her controversial comments about Israel, the Holocaust and LGBTQI issues.
In his decision to reject her visa, Mr. Burke cited Owens’ “ability to incite discord in almost every direction.”
“Australia’s national interest is best served when Candace Owens is elsewhere,” Mr Burke added.
But Owens, 35, responded by describing the move as a “small act of vandalism.”
“What you’re really seeing take shape is that people don’t want it to be in front of an audience,” Owens said on his podcast.
“We all know what has happened in Australia, which is this year’s story: I am not comfortable with the death taking place in Palestine.”
Having risen to fame during the Trump presidency, Candace Owens (pictured) has sparked outrage for her controversial comments about Israel, the Holocaust and LGBTQI issues.
In his decision to refuse her visa, Immigration Minister Tony Burke (pictured) cited Owens’ “ability to incite discord in almost every direction”.
‘The punishment decided for me for not turning a blind eye to this has been harassment.
‘I have accepted it. It is a much easier punishment than the one these children accept on a daily basis.”
Owens became a prominent figure on the American right as one of the few African-American commentators who challenged the Black Lives Matter movement and earned a lucrative deal with the conservative platform Daily Wire.
He has 5.8 million followers on Twitter and about 5 million on Instagram.
However, Ben Shapiro, co-founder of the Daily Wire, fired her earlier this year over her criticism of Israel’s actions in the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and the United States’ support for those actions.
Since that dismissal, she has been accused of a variety of anti-Semitic views and positions, which led to a variety of Jewish groups opposing her visit to Australia and successfully lobbying the Albanian government to block her entry into the country.
The government had bipartisan backing, with Liberal shadow immigration spokesperson Dan Tehan also supporting the ban.
The Candace Owens Live tour was scheduled to kick off in Melbourne on November 17, with tickets on sale for $95 for reserved seating and up to $1500 for a pre-show VIP dinner with Owens herself.
“Join us for an electrifying evening with Candace Owens, the outspoken and fearless American social commentator, author, activist and conservative YouTube sensation,” promoters state on the tour website.
“Known for her controversial opinions and unwavering stance, Candace is ready to light up the Australian and New Zealand stages with her bold, unfiltered perspectives.”
Burke expressed concern for weeks about its arrival on Australian shores.
‘Tickets for these events sell for $100. “I hope they have a good refund policy,” Burke said in August.
Owens and her British husband George Farmer (pictured) have three children. He rose to fame for his outspoken comments during Donald Trump’s presidency.
‘There has not been any visa application, but if there is, the report will reach me personally.
‘My opposition to anti-Semitism and Islamophobia has always been on record.
“I have clear legal powers to refuse a visa to anyone who incites discord.”
Owens’ tour promoter described the decision as “dumb” and called it “censorship.”
“Minister Burke’s reasoning is that he does not want Australians to be exposed to Ms Owens’ message,” a spokesperson added.
‘However, whether you are in the country or not, Australians have access to your message through social media along with millions of viewers every day.
“This is clearly nothing more than political bias disguised as a public safety measure.”
Owens previously told Daily Mail Australia she was “completely surprised” by Mr Burke’s stance and said it highlighted a huge gap between Australia and the United States.
“It just couldn’t happen in America that any politician would be proud to come out and talk about using his powers to cancel a visa for a person who is not a criminal,” he said.
He said it would be a “stain on Australia, and not one that can be easily erased”.
‘I should be able to travel to a country because I am not a criminal.
‘I have never hurt anyone. I have never assigned anyone to violence. I have never been even lightly accused of inciting violence.
While organizations have tried to cancel their events in the past, Owens said he hasn’t seen “the government accept that.”
“I’m fine being invited to university and high school campuses to speak in front of kids, but am I too big of a threat in terms of Australian politics?” she said.
This is not the first conflict with Australia after it criticized government lockdowns during the Covid-19 pandemic.
During a 2021 episode of his late-night show, Owens criticized 5km travel limits, bans on household gatherings, and nighttime curfews, calling them “imprisoning citizens against their will.”
Throughout his political career, he said it was “the first time Australian politics became more relevant”.
“And I think Americans, myself included, were quite surprised by how harshly the Australian government was treating its people,” he said.
The visa issue has also surprised her because of the markedly different approach to free speech and the debate between Australia and the United States.
“In America, we care deeply about freedom of speech; we care deeply about freedom in general… and this completely surprised me,” he said.
The commentator also addressed hot topics in Australia, including immigration and the transition to renewable energy.
Owens supported calls by Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton to block immigration from Gaza for fear of welcoming Hamas supporters into the country.
‘Why should we have to accept refugees?’ he asked, adding that countries should not be made to “feel bad” for denying them immigrants.
“For some reason, the West has become a dumping ground,” he said.
“We have an identity, and it’s good to have an identity, and it’s very wrong to routinely try to make people feel bad for wanting to recognize their own countries.”
He also described green energy as a “push to further enslave humanity,” stating that those driving the transition are not committing to the same goals.
“You can see how our lives are becoming increasingly difficult as we are told we should aspire to the kinds of things they don’t aspire to,” Ms Owens said.
‘I believe in people knowing how to live off the land, how to grow their own food. I think the only protection against a totalitarian state is to be able to take care of yourself and be resourceful with your own neighbors.’
Owens said she would love to meet him and discuss their differences.
“I would love to meet anyone who wanted to talk to me and thought I had said something wrong,” he said.
“When people know me and hear the truth, they will record it as such.”
