The United States government denied a visa to Ada Colau, the Frente Amplio candidate for president of the Spanish government and former mayor of Barcelona, preventing her from attending the 'Ciudades valientes’ event scheduled for November 3 and 4 at the Centro de Bellas Artes de Caguas, organized by the Liga de Ciudades de Puerto Rico. Spanish daily El País reported that the denial came after a visa interview at the US Embassy in Madrid, where Colau was questioned about her participation in a humanitarian aid flotilla seeking to reach Gaza, for which she was detained in Israel for three days.
The Trump administration had requested the electronic visa digitally, and it was approved for her entire team except for her. Colau was to appear on a panel alongside New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani. Her team believes the decision was made for 'political reasons’.
In statements on social media, Colau criticized Trump’s 'freedom', said he decides the fate of Puerto Rico’s citizens without respecting its sovereignty, and shared her remarks alongside Bad Bunny’s song 'Lo que le pasó a Hawaii'. The event is expected to gather up to 200 participants from Puerto Rico’s municipal ecosystem and international guests including Fundació Sentit Comú and Local Progress.