Boy George Fights State Department for Visa

Boy George was all set to play the Showbox July 20th, until The Man brought the hammer down. The U.S. State Department denied the Culture Club frontman a visa, so now his entire North American summer tour (running from July 11th in Las Vegas to August 23rd in Dallas) may have to be scuttled. The tour isn't officially cancelled just yet, but things aren't looking good. According to Boy George's manager:

At the moment, Boy George cannot come to the United States of America because he has been refused permission to enter by the U.S. Administration. This is not in respect of anything he has done in the past, but because he is facing a trial in November in London for something that happened in April last year....George really would love to come to America and repay his American fans' loyalty, and that is why we are asking the U.S. Authorities to reconsider their decision.

That alleged incident from last year? Boy George was arrested after a 28-year-old Norwegian male escort accused the singer of false imprisonment and assault. To which we say: Let those without a Scandinavian prostitute chained to their wall cast the first stone.

Boy George has of course appealed the State Department's decision, and fans wishing to protest the visa denial can contact the State Department's Visa Services' Public Inquiries Branch at usvisa@state.gov. The State Department is rumored to be making its final decision on the matter tonight, but they addressed the issue at their daily press briefing yesterday. In between discussion of Iran, Afghanistan, and Albania, the conversation turned to Boy George, for which the department’s Deputy Spokesman, Tom Casey, was clearly unprepared. Check out the exchange from 2:25-3:25:

Full transcript of that glorious press conference minute after the jump.