Hasan Piker’s CBP Detention Marks Another Trump-Era Attack on Free Speech
Hasan Piker, a Turkish-American online streamer with 4.6 million followers across Twitch and YouTube, was detained by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) upon reentering the United States at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago earlier this week. Piker believes he was targeted for expressing support for Hamas and criticizing President Donald Trump on his livestreaming platforms.
Piker said he was returning from a trip to France through Global Entry—a security check program available to low-risk citizens—when he was asked to “step aside” by CBP. He was then taken to a detention area within the airport and later questioned by a CBP agent regarding his opinions on Trump, Hamas, and his choice of interview guests. After two hours of detainment, he was released and allowed to enter the country.Â
Piker discussed the incident on a Twitch stream, saying he believes it was an attempt to create a chilling effect on those who speak out against the Trump administration. “They straight up tried to get something out of me that they could use to basically detain me permanently,” he said.
According to Piker, the CBP agent “kept saying stuff like, ‘Do you like Hamas?’ ‘Do you support Hamas?’ ‘Do you think Hamas is a terror group or a resistance group?'” To which Piker replied, “I’m on the side of civilians. I want the endless bloods
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