British Nigerian Artivist Curiously Celebrates Unrestricted Entry into USA (With Explosive Blog in Laptop)
14 February 2025
Greetings,
“Are you on your own, sir?” the young, probably Sudanese-British usher at the US Embassy in London asked me. On confirming that I was, she ushered me from my position several places behind the head of the queue, to wait for an officer to finish dealing with a South-Asian-appearing family. They were denied visas, I overheard, on grounds that their links to Great Britain were too tenuous (notwithstanding British colonialism).
In my mind, I got ready to curse the young usher, despite the fact that the only reason I could think of that she would single me out was African respect for an elder. But why this particular no-nonsense officer?
The officer turned out to be not only a cultured person who had actually heard of Paul Robeson, they gave the impression of being a fan of the man! I had to answer questions about having been arrested for pro-Palestine activity, but much to my surprise, I was finally told my application was successful! I didn’t stop by the Palestine protest camp opposite the Embassy in case I was apprehended by the armed police nearby and hauled back indoors to have my approval revoked, and I returned to Liverpool to await the return of my passport. And true enough, it arrived shortly after, complete with a type O1-B visa (meant for artists of “extraordinary ability”), valid till late August 2027!
Whilst in contrast to my being forced to publish two newsletters in one week last August (occasioned by the unexpected denial of my visa application),this has been the longest break between newsletters since I started writing them. As if by way of punishment for this failing, a new president was installed in the United States in the interim - one who keeps the whole world guessing what’s going to happen from minute to minute. The most recent pronouncements (as of the time of this writing) suggest that the ceasefire that coincided with his ascension might end within days, and “all hell will be let loose,” again.
In my own little world, I was privileged to promote a great jazz concert featuring, live from Death Row in Ohio, Keith LaMar. Following that in December, there were two performances of my latest play, Coleridge-Taylor of Freetown. The first was in Liverpool, where the programme note talked of the performativity of outrage toward celebrity abusers while perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity are allowed to parade the world stage undeterred. I wasn’t able to do a written programme for the performance in London a few days later, but as with the Liverpool one, the post-show Q&A session was spirited, sometimes emotional and enlightening for everybody.
At the end of December, during a trip home to Nigeria, I found the space and inspiration to finally start a blog that had been forming in my mind since the beginning of the genocide in Gaza. Being only a very occasional blogger, this one came three years after the previous one, which itself was inspired by the Ukraine war. My cynicism toward organised Christianity informed the title: “Palestine: Utterly Destroy Them,” Saith the Lord? My Pan-Africanist viewpoint is summarised in the subtitle: “An African Man Observes an Inter-Semitic Genocide.” Do please comment on the blog, and share it as you wish.
I may be wrong, but I get the impression that this year’s blog is less controversial than the last one, as Western governments and media seem to have been more successful in selling the Ukraine war than they have the Gaza genocide. One interesting piece of information about Ukraine (and the Western war against Russia) that has successfully been kept under the radar for example is this piece by Seymour Hersch: How America Took Out the Nord Stream, a full two years after it was published.
Despite having shared that article and the fact that I have a previous conviction for pro-Palestine protest, I was able to enter the US without incident in late January to attend SphinxConnect 2025: a gathering of Black people in classical music. I went to promote my newest play, Coleridge-Taylor of Freetown, knowing that this a sizeable proportion of attendees would already know about the composer. Not only was that correct, the closing concert included the competition final in which two contestants played his violin concerto!
The hastily-arranged trip seems to have started paying off because I have just agreed to a performance, not of CToF, but of Call Mr. Robeson in Detroit in June! So, for now, here are:
Forthcoming dates:
March 6. Call Mr. Robeson @ Southport College, Merseyside
April 3. Coleridge-Taylor of Freetown @ HOPS, Leeds
April 5. Call Mr. Robeson @ Highfield Trinity Church, Sheffield
June 15. Call Mr. Robeson @ Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, Detroit, MI, USA
June 19. Call Mr. Robeson @ Raritan Valley Community College, Branchburg NJ USA
I am working on a number of other projects that haven’t materialised yet, but when they do, I’ll put them on the performances page of the website. If you are in a position to arrange additional performances for me, I’ll be very keen to hear from you. The upcoming one in Sheffield (April 5) is being independently promoted by another musician and Robeson fan, Robin Grey.
Screen and Voice Acting
I have main roles in one feature film and two shorts which are all in post-production at present. TERRA (dir. Rory Wilson) is the feature film, set in a hospital in a war zone somewhere in the Middle East. The hospital is forced to relocate to a school after being bombed. I play the chief doctor, Dr. Bassey, who comes up against dangers from both within the hospital and without. MUSTARD SEED (dir. Femi Oladigbolu) is the first, BBC-funded, short. In it, I play Pastor Tayo, whose faith is put to the test after the death of his wife and whose son increasingly questions the validity of his father’s ministry. The final one is a very low-budget affair – THE BLOOD CONNECTION (dir. Abdul Rouf Reyhan) - for a sickle-cell charity. My character, David, reeling from a late diagnosis of the disease, teams up with his son to encourage more Black people to donate blood.
I recently recorded some scenes for a Liverpool-based podcast drama company’s forthcoming series. BAKED OFF! will be the next production by Thunder’s Mouth Theatre, for which I was part of an earlier series, AM I OLD YET? Do check them out.
I was reminded recently that perhaps my first-ever contribution to an audio series is still available online, some twenty years after it was recorded: a talking book about Edward Rushton (1756-1814), the blind human rights campaigner, poet and writer from Liverpool.
Breaking News from Palestine Action
While we wait for concrete action from our politicians, Palestine Action announced today that they have forced the landlords of one of the UK sites occupied by a subsidiary of Israeli-owned arms manufacturer Elbit Systems to sell off the site that UAV Tactical Systems occupies. This is another nail in the coffin, a serious spanner in the workings of the conveyor belt of death that the UK government enables.
Parting shots.
The rest of this newsletter is behind a temporary paywall, to encourage more people to become paid subscribers, or to donate in other ways, which will also give you immediate access to paid content (times is hard!). It features a new collaborative piece of art featuring the aforementioned Keith LaMar, inspiring news about an invention from Tanzania and a great comedienne at the top of her game, speaking to our times.
If you are not reading on, thanks for at least reading this far. You have my best wishes, till the next time.
Yours,
Tayo Aluko
Keith LaMar and artist Molly Crabapple released this great animated video exactly two years to the intended date of his execution.
I remember often reading by candlelight at school in Lagos. Two generations later, that still goes on in most parts of Africa, but this story a Tanzanian entrepreneur ingeniously combating that by recycling and repurposing cement bags.
And finally, hail the greatest president the world has ever known – ever - as brilliantly introduced by the delightful Sarah Cooper.
Thank you for your ongoing support.
Best wishes,
Tayo Aluko
Enjoyed reading and glad you had no problems with your visa.A rare pleasant surprise that immigration procedures turn out not to be awful.