Homeland Security Forces Cancellations of Paco de Lucía Concerts

Burlington, North Carolina, USA - Flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucía's US tour has been delayed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. This has forced the cancellation of several concerts in California and other locations. According to the Flamenco legend's US booking agency, International Music Network (IMN), "Paco's whole band was approved by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), but the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has held up his bass player because he was born in Cuba."

Paco de Lucía's whole tour was completely sold-out and IMN is now having to reschedule every possible date, although there are doubts as to whether the bass player will gain the clearance.
In a January 23rd press release, the University of California at Davis (UC Davis) announced that due to a second visa-processing delay, the rescheduled January 28 performance of Paco de Lucía has been canceled and will not be rescheduled. De Lucia’s band cannot enter the United States in time to perform at Mondavi Center on January 28. Because there is no assurance of when the band will be allowed to enter the country, Mondavi Center has determined that another rescheduling is not advisable.

The January 28 performance had already been rescheduled after visa delays forced the cancellation of the original Tuesday, January 20 performance. This latest delay is also forcing cancellations at California State University, Chico, and Humboldt State University.

This is only the latest in a long series of world music tour cancellations and delays caused by the new policies of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

. [Read a review of de Lucia's latest CD here.

You can also read our editorial regarding this issue by clicking here].