An Australian comedian has rethought her scheduled trip to America after being advised she could be detained over jokes that are critical of the Trump administration, according to reporting in The Guardian.
Award-winning comedian Alice Fraser told the British paper that she was all set to travel to New York to promote her new book and planned to apply for a special visa specifically for comedians wanting to live and work in the U.S.
That's when Fraser said she decided to ask an immigration lawyer a "ridiculous question — that I do political satire and have a fair few jokes floating around on Elon Musk and Donald Trump, and whether that would be a risk."
Fraser continued, “I thought I was being paranoid, but she said it might [pose a risk] and they’d almost certainly Google me. She said while the vast majority of people will be able to travel in and out … they’re definitely doing increased scrutinizing."
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The fact that she has two children convinced Fraser not to take the risk, she said, adding, "the vision of me being there with a baby strapped to me and held up and hassled, or worse … I’m not up for that.”
The Guardian cited an immigration law group that advised, “'the US government is relying on social media screening more and more during the vetting process to gather extensive information', noting an online presence offers insights into 'interests, associations and potential security concerns.'"
According to the article, "Foreigners have had their devices searched at the US border and been denied entry, including a French scientist who had messages on his phone critical of Donald Trump."
Still others have been held in ICE detention "for weeks," the report said.
CNN reported that more than 400 international student visas have been revoked by the Trump administration.
Fraser was described as "a regular critic of Trump" on political podcasts and radio shows. She told the Sydney Morning Herald in 2020: “I wouldn’t take an IOU from Trump if he wrote it on the money he owed me.”