WASHINGTON: The Trump administration has revoked the visas of six foreigners deemed by US officials to have made derisive comments or made light of the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk last month.
The State Department said Tuesday it had determined they should lose their visas after reviewing their online social media posts and clips about Kirk, who was killed while speaking at a Utah college campus on Sept. 10.
The announcement came as President Donald Trump was posthumously awarding him America’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. At Kirk’s funeral in September, Trump called him a “great American hero” and “martyr” for freedom.
The administration and its supporters have targeted people for their comments about Kirk, leading to firings or other discipline of journalists, teachers and others, and raising free speech concerns.
The six foreigners who had their visas revoked were from Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Mexico, Paraguay and South Africa. They were not identified.
Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio “will defend our borders, our culture, and our citizens by enforcing our immigration laws,” the State Department said. “Aliens who take advantage of America’s hospitality while celebrating the assassination of our citizens will be removed.”
Vice President JD Vance and other top US officials have encouraged people to call out offensive language about Kirk that they see online. In an unusual tweet last month, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau asked social media users to copy him on any relevant posts, saying he was personally “disgusted to see some on social media praising, rationalizing, or making light of the event, and have directed our consular officials to undertake appropriate action.”
In addition to Tuesday’s action, the administration has ramped up efforts to identify and potentially expel thousands of foreigners in the United States, notably students, who it says have either fomented or participated in unrest or publicly supported protests against Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The administration has also denied visas to applicants whose social media histories have been critical of its policies.
Among the higher-profile cases, the administration has expelled South Africa’s ambassador to the United States for comments critical of Trump, revoked a visa for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to attend the UN General Assembly and yanked the visas for British punk-rap duo Bob Vylan. It said it is reviewing the status of the more than 55 million current US visa holders for potential violations of its standards.
Those actions have been criticized by civil rights groups as violations of constitutional protections for freedom of speech, which apply to anyone in the United States and not just to American citizens.
