Trans singer Bells Larsen cancels US tour dates... he can’t apply for a visa

[Jessica_Rose]

Trans singer Bells Larsen cancels US tour dates because he can't apply for a visa under Trump

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/trans-singer-bells-larsen-cancels-us-tour-dates-because-he-can-t-apply-for-a-visa-under-trump/ar-AA1CYFtM?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=99b6cfa73fb34a50d0db3f00d8cf9f27&ei=124

Story by John Russell (15 April 2025)

Canadian singer-songwriter Bells Larsen has canceled his upcoming U.S. tour dates thanks to the Trump administration's new rules targeting transgender visa applicants.

Larsen, whose sophomore album Blurring Time will be released on April 25, had been scheduled to perform in New York City, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and other U.S. cities this June. But in a Friday, April 11, Instagram post, the musician announced that he'd been forced to cancel all American dates on his upcoming tour after being told he would not be able to get a U.S. visa.

Larsen said he'd received an email from the American Federation of Musicians informing him that he would not be able to apply for a visa "because US Immigration only recognizes identification that corresponds with one's assigned sex at birth."

In late February, Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a memo directing U.S. consulates and immigration offices worldwide to ban transgender visa applicants under a section of the 1952 Immigration and Nationality Act requiring a "permanent fraud bar" for people who lie on their visa applications. Rubio's directive followed President Donald Trump's February 5 executive order calling for a national and international ban on trans female athletes in girls' and women's sports. However, as legal experts have noted, the new visa guidance's language is so broad it applies to all new transgender visa applicants.