Australian activist Drew Pavlou says he was deported from the United States after spending 30 hours at Los Angeles International Airport trying to convince authorities that his online posts about moving into Billie Eilish’s mansion were a joke.
Pavlou’s campaign followed Eilish’s remarks at the 68th Grammy Awards, where she said “no one is illegal on stolen land” in reference to ICE raids.
In response, Pavlou said he would “move into” the singer’s Los Angeles home because “no human being is illegal on stolen land.”
On Sunday, the 26-year-old claimed Department of Homeland Security officials were unconvinced his comment was a joke.
“Billie Eilish got me deported from the US – I think her legal team contacted DHS,” he said.
“I spent 30 hours at LAX immigration trying to explain that my [sic] posts were just a joke and that I didn’t actually plan to personally move into her mansion.
“Honestly most of the agents were nice and laughed at the idea but there was nothing I could do, maybe evil leftists are still in charge of sections of the bureaucracy.
“I guess some people are in fact actually illegal on stolen land. And I guess I am just a BAD GUY …”
Earlier, Pavlou had said he would not do “anything illegal” and would leave if asked: “I’ll ring the doorbell, and if they tell me to leave, I’ll leave straight away because I don’t want to get in trouble.”
Pavlou first rose to prominence during pro-Hong Kong protests at the University of Queensland and has since remained a vocal critic of the Chinese Communist Party while also targeting left-wing and pro-Palestine movements.
Source: News.com.au.
