New Zealand refuses entry to Tyler the Creator

It has been reported that US rapper Tyler the Creator and his rap group "Odd Future" have been barred from entering New Zealand.

New Zealand Immigration deemed the group a "potential threat to public order" and pointed to several past incidents of inciting violence, including against Australian anti violence activist Talitha Stone.

Ms. Stone had started a petition on behalf of Collective Shout calling for Australia's Immigration Minister to cancel Tyler the Creators visa due to his misogynistic lyrical content. 

Tyler shared one of her tweets with his 1.7 million followers, many of whom took it as an invitation to prove their devotion to him by bombarding her with abuse and threats to rape her. 

Tyler launched a vicious tirade against her at the Enmore Theatre ‘all ages’ gig as the crowd cheered and punched the air. The footage was obtained and uploaded to YouTube.

As reported by CNN:

"Odd Future has been deemed to be a potential threat to public order and the public interest for several reasons, including incidents at past performances in which they have incited violence," Immigration New Zealand said in a statement.

Karen Urwin, border operations manager for Immigration New Zealand, pointed to an incident in 2011 at an Odd Future concert in the United States that left a police officer hospitalized.

Urwin also said that the group's leader, Tyler the Creator, riled up his fans last year against an Australian woman who had been part of an effort by a feminist group to have his visa revoked. He rewteeted her tweets, which led to threats and harassment, media reports say.

The group, whose full name is Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All, has been criticized by feminists for what they call misogynist lyrics.

Urwin said it is the first time that the regulations have been used to keep a performer out of the country.

"It's a section in our legislation we don't use very often, but they are clearly on the extreme edge of the music spectrum" she said, explaining that the law is more commonly used to block the entry of Holocaust deniers, Hells Angels bikers or hard-line Muslim preachers.