Hasan Piker, one of the most popular left-wing political creators in the U.S., says he was detained and questioned at the Chicago O’Hare Airport upon returning to the U.S. after a trip to France.
In a stream in which he addressed the experience, Piker claims that he was questioned about his views on Trump, Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis.
Piker has been outwardly critical of President Donald Trump and the U.S.’s ongoing support of the Israeli military, and he said it was clear to him that the Customs and Border Protection agent knew who he was.
“He kept saying stuff like, ‘Do you like Hamas?’” Piker said in a video. “I kept repeating the same statement over and over again… I am on the side of civilians. I want the endless bloodshed to end. I am a pacifist.”
Piker said that he felt that the agent who interviewed him was trying to get him to say something incriminating, and that the agent was aware of his online presence. Though Piker is a U.S. citizen, he was concerned about being jailed at the border for his political speech, since some U.S. citizens have been wrongfully detained amid Trump’s crackdown on immigration.
According to NBC News, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official said that, in recounting his story online, Piker is “lying for likes.”
“Claims that his political beliefs triggered the inspection are baseless,” said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin in a statement. “Our officers are following the law, not agendas. Upon entering the country, this individual was referred for further inspection — a routine, lawful process that occurs daily, and can apply for any traveler. Once his inspection was complete, he was promptly released.”
Piker has pushed back against DHS’s response.
On X, Piker wrote: “the dhs response is so funny cus they’re not even disputing that it happened, they’re omitting the insane questions that were asked, & instead claiming that i wasn’t targeted for my political beliefs. why’d y’all ask me about trump, israel, houthis, hamas and my twitch bans then?”
