Just this week, officials arrested members of the iconic British punk rock band, UK Subs, at LAX. They were then located by the UK authorities and deported back to the UK. Known for pioneering the British punk rock scene, the band has been outspoken critics of former U.S. President Donald Trump and his policies. Three members of the band—Alvin Gibbs, Marc Carrey, and Stefan Häublein—were arrested as they entered the United States. Their detention was a result of ambiguous visa status.
The trip where they almost were jailed occurs at LAX. The trio of musicians realized they had been taken to a freezing holding pen, along with other detainees hailing from Colombia, China and Mexico. In spite of the crazy experience, only UK Subs’ singer Charlie Harper was admitted into the U.S. His traveling circus marched on, and he climbed onstage for a rescheduled LA show, this time supported by recruited-here session players.
Acting Music and Events Manager Alvin Gibbs shared some of the difficulties that arose during the detention process.
"Two police officers escorted me to another section of LAX, where I found Stefan and Marc already detained in a cold holding pen, along with a group of Colombian, Chinese, and Mexican detainees. My luggage, phone, and passport were confiscated," said Gibbs.
Gibbs said she was invited for a second interview the very next day at 4 a.m., just hours after first arriving at 7 p.m. He drove over a day’s travel without sleep. That was all he’d had – a pot noodle and some cups of tea – before they marched him on to the flight back to the UK.
"By the time we were escorted on to the flight at 8 p.m. the next day, I had gone without sleep for well over a day, surviving only on a pot noodle and a couple of cups of tea," Gibbs added.
As some of you may know, his partner Aaron went through an extremely stressful 25 hour wait for Aaron’s release from detention. The official rationale for the detention was equally murky. As Gibbs further speculated, perhaps it was because of his biting criticism of the Trump administration.
"I can’t help but wonder whether my frequent, and less than flattering, public comments regarding their president and his administration played a role – or perhaps I’m simply succumbing to paranoia," Gibbs mused.
This incident represents only one example of a troubling trend of prolonged detentions and deportations faced by travelers to the U.S. Philippe Baptiste, France’s minister of higher education and research, was alarmed that the same could happen here.
"This measure was apparently taken by the American authorities because the researcher’s phone contained exchanges with colleagues and friends in which he expressed a personal opinion on the Trump administration’s research policy," stated Baptiste.