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The Peace Peace was founded in 1921, to commemorate the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the war of 1812
As the pandemic continues to sweep the U.S., Canadians are becoming increasingly concerned about what U.S. visitors may bring with them across the border.
The Peace Arch was built directly on the border of Blaine, Washington and Surrey, British Columbia, and is a 67 meter high (20 meter) testament to the close ties between Canada and the US.
Inscribed on one side are the words “May these gates never be closed”, a reminder of the nearly 8,891 km (5,525 miles) of un-militarized border that separates the two peoples.
These words have been observed for almost 100 years – until the coronavirus pandemic effectively closes the border indefinitely.
The closure took effect on March 21, and was agreed by both governments. After being extended several times over the summer, the closure will remain in effect until August 21 – although most expect the closure to be extended again.
“I never thought I would be sitting here in mid-August and that the border is still closed,” says Len Saunders, a dual citizen living in Blaine.
“It just seems to drag on and on with no end in sight.”
Although the closure of the border has had significant economic and personal consequences for the millions of people who live along it or have loved ones on the other side, the vast majority of Canadians want it to remain close.
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The US-Canada border has been closed since March
A July interview by Ipsos Reid found that eight in ten Canadians wanted the border to remain closed until at least the end of 2020.
And because the pandemic has continued to spread across the U.S., there have also been tensions between U.S. drivers and Canadian residents.
Although non-essential travel is prohibited, commercial drivers who deliver goods and allow people to work across borders in essential services may cross.
People with American license plates have reported being harassed and vandalizing their cars, even though they have the right to be there.
Mr Saunders, an immigration lawyer who has many clients who regularly cross the border to work, says many people are scared.
“They are all afraid to drive their cars on the lower mainland because of vandalism, dirty looks and just being treated like some ‘terrible American,'” he told the BBC.
One of his clients, an architect who was allowed to practice in Canada during the shutdown, says he was told to “go back home” because of his car.
Tensions are so high that British Columbia Prime Minister John Horgan has suggested that Canadians use American license plates instead of taking the bus instead of on bicycles.
In the Muskoka region of Ontario, where many people own summer homes, the hostility has received the attention of the police.
Ontario provincial police say a Canadian in Huntsville has filed a complaint after two men allegedly charged him over his license plate in Florida.
“Most recently this weekend there was a gentleman heading to Huntsville to get gas in his car, and two gentlemen approached him and said, ‘you are American home.’ And he said, “I’m Canadian. I live here.” And they literally said, no, we do not believe you can show us your passport, “Phil Harding, the mayor of nearby Kuskoka Lakes, told CP24.
“It just gets a little aggressive, and she’s scared for her life a little bit.”
Strict border security has also led to some notable arrests.
In Grand Forks, British Columbia, Royal Canadian Mounted Police spent more than two hours chasing a man who allegedly ran illegally in a stolen car on July 24 under a river. The “drifting yacht” ended where the river melted, when police, with the help of bystanders, were able to wade into the river and escort him back to shore.
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The suspected ‘float chase’
Costs are pending, but anyone caught breaking the limits can be fined up to C $ 750,000 ($ 566,000; £ 434,000) and sentenced to six months in prison, or C $ 1m and three years as their actions “cause risk of imminent death or serious bodily harm”.
Those hefty fines are not just for intentional rule-breakers.
On Wednesday, police warned Americans participating in an annual fleet under the St. Claire River near the Michigan border that even accidentally crossing the border could result in a hefty fine. In 2016, in more carefree times, Canadian police escorted a total of about 1,500 floats back to the U.S. side after winds blew them off course.
However, the effects of border closure on small towns along opposite sides are not insignificant.
Before coronavirus, about 300,000 people crossed the border every day, including Canadians who regularly made day trips to score a deal at a U.S. mall as a gas station, and U.S. tourists who explored the wonder of Niagara Falls.
Since March, non-commercial border traffic ashore to Canada has dropped by nearly 95%, according to the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA).
“It will all be decided there,” Mr Saunders said.
But the economic impact of closing the border for travelers is nothing compared to what would happen to Canada if another wave of coronavirus would force a second shutdown, says Ambarish Chandra, a professor of economics at the University of Toronto.
“This trip has a huge economic impact on the communities that travelers go to,” he says.
“But given the pandemic in the US, and the number of cases there, it makes sense to limit travel to the US – potentially indefinitely.”
Mr. Chandra says the government should provide assistance to border towns whose economy depends heavily on foreign tourism, but must stick firmly with the border closures until the pandemic is over.
“In the long run, it’s way cheaper to bail out all of Niagara Falls, Ontario, than to close Toronto for another three or four weeks,” he says.
After months of closure of most companies, Canada’s coronavirus cases are declining and the country is in the midst of reopening its economy. Daily cases have dropped from a high of 2,760 on May 3 to a few hundred.
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Restaurants and shops have been open for at least a few weeks in most major cities, and so far things are still down.
Meanwhile, the US is trying to tame its outbreak, which reached a peak of 75,821 on July 17 and sees about 40,000 new cases a day.
Coronavirus: US vs. Canada
That number is what is causing the unrest that many Canadians are having with American travelers.
“Montana is located just south of us, now has a second spike of business, and I do not find it regrettable for anyone stopping at the border, let’s say so,” said Jim Willett, the mayor of Coutts, Alberta .
“I’m afraid if we opened the border too soon, we could have more of a problem like what’s going south.”
Its city is one of five border cities where U.S. residents traveling to Alaska can enter Canada, as the CBSA shocked at the end of July on the so-called “shock hole in Alaska.”
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Since Alaska does not share borders with other U.S. states, Americans must drive through Canada, hence the “slippery slope.”
After the border was closed, many expressed concern that drivers had taken the time to explore some of the most scenic places, such as Vancouver Island and Banff, Jasper, and Lake Louise.
In June, the RCMP issued seven maps worth $ 1,200 ($ 906, £ 694) each to Americans who broke the rules by sightseeing in Alberta.
“Do not go through. Go straight to Alaska,” Premier Horgan said during a news conference in July.
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U.S. tourists have been tracked down in scenic locations such as Banff National Park, despite the border closure
Complaints about the loophole and the lack of enforcement led to the collapse.
At the end of July, the Border Patrol announced that Alaska-restricted travelers had only restricted access points, had to take the most direct route to their destination, and had to display tags in their car identifying themselves as U.S. drivers who go to the northern state.
They are also restricted to a “reasonable period of stay” in Canada, and are prohibited from visiting national parks, resorts and other tourist destinations, with rule-breakers facing stiff fines.
Since the stricter rules have been introduced, Mr Willett says he is not “worried” about the traffic coming across the border.
“[We] get a lot of people through all times of the day and night. Most are fairly cooperative, “he says.
