\n<\/p>\n
\n\tThe U.S. Department of State revoked the travel visa of a Mexican band that was set to tour the U.S. this month after they prominently displayed images of a notorious drug kingpin at a recent concert.<\/p>\n
\n\tMexican corrido group\u00a0Los Alegres del Barranco was scheduled to perform April 5 in Austin, Texas, the first in a handful of planned shows this side of the border. However, during their concert Saturday in Guadalajara, the group\u2019s video backdrop displayed images of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, a.k.a. \u201cEl Mencho,\u201d the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (JNGC), Billboard<\/em> reports<\/a>; in February, Secretary of State Marco Rubio named the JNGC as both a Foreign Terrorist Organization and Specially Designated Global Terrorist.<\/p>\n \n\tAccording to the BBC<\/a>, the song the band played that accompanied the \u201cEl Mencho\u201d images similarly praised the drug kingpin, calling him \u201ca man of war who loves his family\u201d and celebrated his exploits. (The BBC notes that Los Alegres del Barranco also have a song honoring Joaqu\u00edn \u201cEl Chapo\u201d Guzm\u00e1n.)<\/p>\n \n\tLos Alegres del Barranco first drew condemnation from Mexican politicians \u2014 including President Claudia Sheinbaum, who criticized the band\u2019s actions as \u201cglorification of crime\u201d and opened an investigation \u2014 before lawmakers stateside caught wind of the \u201cEl Mencho\u201d images, leading to the revocation of the band\u2019s visas and ultimately the cancellation of their upcoming shows in the U.S.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI\u2019m a firm believer in freedom of expression, but that doesn\u2019t mean that expression should be free of consequences,\u201d Deputy Secretary Christopher Landau wrote on social media<\/a> Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n