This year, our family of 12 decided to have our annual family vacation in Maine, beginning with the Moxie Festival in Lisbon, followed by a week along the coast. Recent events have made us reconsider our decision. We feel that Mainers should know why we have changed our plans.

In January, our prime minister went to Mar-a-Lago to meet with President Trump and to inform him that Canada had decided to spend $1.8 billion on increased border controls, aimed at curbing illegal immigration to the U.S. and drug trafficking. President Trump took this opportunity to ridicule our prime minister by repeatedly referring to him as the “governor of the great state of Canada.”

President Trump has said that he will annex Canada by using “economic force,” and continues to threaten tariffs of 25% on all Canadian goods other than crucial energy imports. He has not let up his call to make Canada the 51st state. His negative statements about Canada have been largely untrue.

For the above reasons, we have decided to cancel our trip to Maine and to forgo future visits to the U.S. until we feel more welcome.

We are aware that not every person in the U.S. voted for President Trump, but his statements and actions regarding Canada damage the well-being of all Canadians. We love our country as much as Americans love theirs, and any existential threat from a more powerful neighbor is taken seriously.

Conrad Gregoire
Kanata, Ontario, Canada