Joan Baez interview: denied

One of the most frustrating aspects of being a journalist: being denied an interview request.
Us journalist writers are an extremely sensitive bunch, but it hurts extra when the subject in question does it for no apparent reason. Such was the case today when Joan Baez's publicist rejected my interview request today.
There was no explanation, just a simple "Ms. Baez won't be able to do any interviews." Polite thank yous were exchanged, but afterward, I was kind of heated.
"I bet if I told her I was organizing some sort of tree sitting, she would have popped up on a third line right then and there" I thought to myself.
I was persuaded to play the race card too: "I'm a Chicano journalist, and knowing Ms. Baez's Mexican-American roots, as well as her role in the early Chicano/UFW movement, I think she might want to reconsider her decision."
But no, just a simple decline to talk. That sucks.
To quote my editor "Maybe you should have said you were Richard Farina."