Prominent Irish rap group Kneecap threatens legal action after being barred from entering Canada

Irish rap group Kneecap says it’s initiating legal action against Toronto MP Vince Gasparro, who said Canada would not allow them to enter the country.

Earlier on Friday, Toronto MP Vince Gasparro revealed the federal government had deemed Kneecap “ineligible” to come to Canada. The trio was scheduled to perform two shows in Toronto, and another two in Vancouver, in October.

“Our government will not tolerate the advocating of political violence, terrorism or Anti-Semitism and hate more broadly,” Gasparro wrote on X Friday.

“The group have amplified political violence and publicly displayed support for terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah and Hamas,” said Gasparro, who serves as the parliamentary secretary to the secretary of state for combatting crime.

Kneecap responded on Instagram with a letter addressed directly to Gasparro, calling his comments “wholly untrue and deeply malicious.”

“We have today instructed our lawyers to initiate legal action against you. We will be relentless in defending ourselves against baseless accusations to silence our opposition to a genocide being committed by Israel,” reads the letter.

“When we beat you in court, which we will, we will donate every cent to assist some of the thousands of child amputees in Gaza.”