Stephen Smysnuik
Did Canada overreach by denying Kneecap entry?
A protestor holds a "Free Kneecap" sign at The National March For Palestine in London on Sept. 6. Ben Gingell / Shutterstock
The Topline
- Northern Irish rap group Kneecap was banned from entering Canada on Friday, and scheduled concerts in Toronto and Vancouver have been cancelled
- Vince Gasparro, Parliamentary Secretary for Combating Crime, said in a video on X that the group was denied for actions and statements that violate Canadian law
- Member Mo Chara is currently facing a U.K. terrorism-related offense for allegedly waving a Hezbollah flag at a concert
A chilling effect on free expression
The government’s decision to ban the politically outspoken trio sends the unfortunate message that freedom of expression is under threat in Canada.
It’s true that while foreign nationals, including the members of Kneecap, have no right to enter Canada, the decision implies that artistic and political speech critical of Western foreign policy, or that is sympathetic to marginalized movements, can be treated as terrorist advocacy. Canada positions itself as a champion of free expression, but this decision looks like censorship by immigration law.
The timing couldn’t have been worse either – just one day before, the FCC essentially forced the cancellation of Jimmy Kimmel’s late night show , and the optics comparing the two countries is, well, less than peachy.
In his statement, Gasparro said, “Advocating for political violence, glorifying terrorist organisations and displaying hate symbols that directly target the Jewish community are not protected forms of expression and will not be tolerated by our government.”
And this is all true, based on the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) – but the Kneecap situation involves some contested facts. What exactly the group has been saying, what symbols were displayed, and, more importantly, what the context was isn’t clear and hasn’t been settled by any court of law ( Chara’s trial is set for Sept. 26 ).
The government’s interpretation is murky at best, having stretched the definition of Section 34 of IRPA – a.k.a. security inadmissibility – which is meant for terrorism, espionage and violent extremists, not artists with provocative stage acts. Applying “membership” to or “glorification” of a terror group to a band’s artistic expression risks diluting the seriousness of actual terrorist threats.
Kneecap responded through a statement on Instagram, calling Gasparro’s comments “wholly untrue and deeply malicious,” adding that they will pursue legal action against Gasparro personally.
The group has stated previously that they don’t support Hamas or Hezbollah (both of which have been labeled terrorist organizations by the government of Canada), despite Chara allegedly waiving a Hezbollah flag at a London concert in 2024, and allegedly chanting “Up Hamas! Up Hezbollah!”
Given the context of their artistry and stage show, the chanting and flag waiving are more likely the result of punk kids doing punk kid stuff, stirring shit up to make a point. Kneecap’s entire philosphy is to challenge the power structures that keep citizens of the West oppressed and perpetuates a genocide of the Palestinian people.
The BC Civil Liberties Association has chimed in , demanding through a statement on Instagram that the Liberals reverse the travel ban. Denying them entry is just a bad look at a time when Canada should be promoting itself as a bastion of free expression at a time when our neighbours to the south are actively dismantling it.
As an aside...
Gasparro’s statement was weird – he has direct legal authority to deny Kneecap entry. For a high profile case like this, it would usually be Gasparro’s boss, Minister of Public Safety Dominic LaBlanc, who would make the statement. The role of parliamentary secretaries, like Gasparro, is political. They’re functionally a mouthpiece for the ministers in parliament and to the press. Gasparro has no statutory decision-making power and he had no power to ban Kneecap from entering Canada, despite the wording in his statement that indicated otherwise.
It’s possible he was taking the heat so that LeBlanc could keep his hands clean. Either way, the decision would have been made by Canadian Border Services and public safety officials, who handle day-to-day operations of people coming and going through borders.
I’m not sure it was even necessary to make an announcement like this – the whole hullabaloo likely would have been avoided if Gasparro kept quiet all together.
Kneecap’s entry is a privilege, not a right
Canada denies entry to performers all the time. Snoop Dogg has been denied entry multiple times, related to past drug and firearm convictions. 50 Cent was denied back in 2005, also for past criminal convictions. Yes, those were criminal convictions that complicated their efforts to get across the border, but what about Tyler, The Creator? He was denied entry in 2011 for promoting violence against women in his lyrics – no criminal conviction necessary.
While all three of those performers have performed in Canada since, none of them have any legal right to enter – and neither does Kneecap. The IRPA gives the Canadian government sweeping discretion over who gets in, and for foreign nationals entry is a privilege, not a right. The government only needs to show reasonable grounds for inadmissibility.
And the grounds for Kneecap’s ban are, y’know, kiiiiinda reasonable. If Mo Chara was a plumber rather than a performer, his terrorism charge would most definitely get him barred from the country. There’s also supposedly footage, which has not been made public, of Chara chanting, “Up Hamas! Up Hezbollah!”
“These are not expressions of art or legitimate political critique, they are dangerous endorsements of violence and hate,” Gasparro said in his statement on Friday.
The band has denied the characterizations strenuously, and they can try to fight the ban in court – but that’ll be an expensive and likely fruitless battle. Section 34 of the IRPA allows Canada to bar non‐citizens, along with permanent residents, on “security grounds,” including if they advocate for, glorify, are a member of, or are in support of organizations involved in violence, terrorism, or subversion.
And while Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms (akin to the U.S.’s First Amendment) ensures that any law or government action must respect the right to free expression, certain categories such as hate speech, direct threats and incitement of violence aren’t protected. The Anti-Terrorism Act, 2015 amended laws to strengthen provisions dealing with “terrorist propaganda,” including the advocacy or promotion of terrorism.
So while the government may have stretched the meaning of “security grounds” to apply it to Kneecap’s artistic expression, it doesn’t exactly matter – the government has wide latitude to deny any foreign national from entering based on even light evidence.
