This week, the British government decided that Hasan Piker and Cenk Uygur, two leftwing US commentators with millions of followers, are not “conducive to the public good” and banned them from entering the country. That’s a wonderfully vague phrase that could mean anything from “they said mean things about our ally” to “they once wore socks with sandals.” The pair themselves suspect the ban stems from their prolific criticism of Israel, which they’ve been very vocal about. Some critics have accused them of antisemitism, a charge they deny.
Now, we could spend all day litigating everything Piker and Uygur have ever said - and trust us, the internet has tried - but let’s focus on the broader point. Piker has definitely said some objectionable things, like calling some Orthodox Jews “inbred,” which he later apologized for. But what exactly crosses the line into “not conducive to the public good”? The British government hasn’t clarified. Meanwhile, conservative podcaster Ben Shapiro once said that “Arabs like to bomb crap and live in open sewage.” He later apologized for that specific remark, but he’s also repeatedly characterized Arabs as barbarians who “value murder.” Has the UK ever banned him from speaking? Nope. So apparently, the line is less about what you say and more about who you’re criticizing. Convenient.