Australia has rejected far-right provocateur Candace Owens’ visa application ahead of a planned national speaking tour, with the immigration minister, Tony Burke, saying she had the “capacity to incite discord”.
The US conservative influencer and podcast host, who has advanced conspiracy theories and antisemitic rhetoric including minimising Nazi medical experiments in concentration camps, will be blocked from coming to Australia after the federal government voiced alarm about her record.
“From downplaying the impact of the Holocaust with comments about [notorious Nazi doctor Josef] Mengele through to claims that Muslims started slavery, Candace Owens has the capacity to incite discord in almost every direction,” Burke said on Sunday.
“Australia’s national interest is best served when Candace Owens is somewhere else.”
Owens had scheduled a five-date speaking tour of Australia in November, with events in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. Tickets ranged from $95 for general admission to $295 for a VIP meet and greet and $1,500 for a private dinner with the conservative media personality.
She has courted controversy with incendiary claims about Jewish, transgender and Muslim people. In July, she appeared to cast doubt on well-documented Nazi medical experiments on prisoners, calling such accounts “completely absurd” and “bizarre propaganda”.
The US Anti-Defamation League, which works to combat antisemitism, has accused Owens of coming to “embrace and promote antisemitic tropes and anti-Israel rhetoric”, noting comments where she called Judaism a “pedophile-centric religion”. LGBTQ+ advocacy organisation Glaad has pointed to allegedly anti-trans comments from Owens, including calling the trans equality movement “evil” and “satanic”. She has also claimed “white supremacy and white nationalism is not a problem that is harming Black America”.
Owens’ Australian tour had been opposed by some local Jewish groups while the opposition home affairs spokesman, James Paterson, called her “a dangerous antisemite and a conspiracy theorist” during a Sky News interview.
Burke told Nine newspapers in August that he had asked his department for a brief on her visit and consulted the federal antisemitism envoy, Jillian Segal.
Nine first reported on Sunday that Owens would not be allowed to enter Australia. Burke’s office confirmed her visa had been denied.
Guardian Australia contacted Owens’ management and the local tour promoters, Rocksman, for comment. Neither responded immediately to requests and Owens has not addressed the visa news on her social media accounts.
“Candace Owens Live! Australian and New Zealand Tour event will appeal to audiences seeking alternative viewpoints and in-depth discussions on pressing political and social topics. Owens’ provocative approach often sparks debate, making the event a must-see for those who enjoy candid conversations about controversial issues,” the tour website states.
The Zionist Federation of Australia chief executive, Alon Cassuto, welcomed the news Owens had been denied entry to Australia.
“Bigotry and antisemitism are unacceptable in any form, regardless of whether they originate from the far left or right,” he said on Sunday.
“For the sake of our nation’s social cohesion, there is no place in Australia for Candace Owens.”
During the pandemic, Owens suggested the US military invade Australia to free its people “suffering under a totalitarian regime” while drawing comparisons to Hitler, Stalin and the Taliban.