Topline
Far-right political activist Milo Yiannopoulos was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Thursday in New Orleans, according to the Department of Homeland Security, which said he still remains in custody Friday after failing to attend an immigration hearing.
British far-right political pundit Milo Yiannopoulos hosts the ‘Bishops Enough Is Enough’ rally at the MECU Pavilion November 16, 2021 in Baltimore, Maryland.
Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Key Facts
Yiannopoulos, who lives in the U.S. and was born in the U.K., is registered in ICE’s detainee database, though details about his detention and where he is being held have not been disclosed.
DHS said in a post Yiannopoulos entered the U.S. legally in May 2019 but “chose to overstay his welcome” and failed to attend an immigration hearing, resulting in a removal order issued by an immigration judge on July 22.
Yiannopoulos will remain in ICE custody pending his removal.
Yiannopoulos said in 2017 after resigning as an editor from Breitbart News he owned an O-1 visa, which works as a temporary work permit for people with “extraordinary ability or achievement in fields like science, business, education, athletics, or the arts.”
The far-right activist’s immigration status was brought to attention after a falling out with senior Trump administration officials, The Telegraph reported.
Fellow far-right political activist and conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer took credit for Yiannopoulos’ detainment in a series of posts Friday, claiming former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., a Trump loyalist turned detractor, employed Yiannopoulos to produce her podcast and allowed him to live in her home.
TMZ first reported Yiannopoulos’ detainment, reporting he was in New Orleans on Thursday night ahead of a Kanye West concert (Yiannopoulos previously worked for West as a political and corporate consultant).
Tangent
Yiannopoulos has been a supporter of the Trump administration’s anti-immigration agenda, saying in a tweet last year, “We have got to deport millions and millions and millions of people. Without that, nothing else matters.”
Key Background
Yiannopoulos rose to fame in the leadup to the 2016 presidential election won by Trump. He wrote articles on Breitbart blasting Islam and feminism, and took part in trolling campaigns mocking affirmative action efforts and feminists. He was banned from Twitter in 2016 after inciting and engaging in a harassment campaign against actress and comedian Leslie Jones, who had starred in a 2016 “Ghostbusters” reboot featuring an all-female main cast. Yiannopoulos also hosted controversial college speaking tours, with many of his appearances being met with backlash and student protest as critics argued he was spreading hate speech. Yiannopoulos resigned from Breitbart and had a speaking invitation rescinded from the Conservative Political Action Conference in 2017 after he appeared to defend relationships between older men and teenage boys. He later argued his remarks were misinterpreted and stemmed from his own experiences. Yiannopoulos has since distanced himself from Trump, saying he organized a 2022 Mar-a-Lago meeting between Trump, West and white nationalist Nick Fuentes “just to make Trump’s life miserable.”