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SXSW threatens international artists with deportation over unofficial shows
- TillE 10y agoThis language obviously wasn't run by a lawyer or anything. "Revoked passport" is really not a thing that the US is capable of doing to citizens of other countries. They also get the name of CBP wrong. What a weirdly sloppy and threatening contract.
- 6stringmerc 10y agoFrom what I understand via second hand comments (some from the AV Club itself) it may be standard Guest Worker Visa type boilerplate. At least at the core. Now, whether SXSW turned up the volume to make a point / wipe-their-hands-clean is probably a bit more for conjecture. A good number of bands drop in to Dallas if they're playing SXSW, but I don't know if that option or this new highlighted tone might have any affect. Honestly unless a band is really being courted / funded by somebody with deep pockets, I don't know how the band would show up to Austin / the US just for one show. I mean, for most international bands, I'd hope for their sake they're already here on Guest Worker Visas for their music act. I do know Pogo from Australia learned the hard way via the IRS... But, I don't say this lightly, there's probably a good number of bands being flown in by corporate interests just for SXSW bragging rights so maybe this actually has teeth. I mean, it's not an "indie darling" anymore. It's the kind of place where they have acts playing on a stage that is an oversized Doritos vending machine[1], and caught so much flack for it they finally dialed some things down. Like using Homeless people as WiFi spots[2]. [1] http://www.brooklynvegan.com/files/img/music2/doritosjacked.jpg http://www.brooklynvegan.com/files/img/music2/doritosjacked.... [2] http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2012/03/13/148506762/turning-homeless-men-into-wifi-hotspots-at-sxsw-ignites-debate http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2012/03/13/148506762/...