Published On 26/10/2025
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Last update: 19:32 (Mecca time)
Bulldozers are working in a picturesque small city located on the Canadian-American border to enable Canadians to once again reach, without customs procedures, a library, part of which is located in one of the two countries and the other part in the other, and crossed by the dividing line between them, after a decision by the administration of President Donald Trump led to an end to its exceptional status.
For more than a century, Canadians in Stansted have been able to use the library entrance located on American soil without having to pass through customs, but the Trump administration canceled this exemption last March.
“It’s the end of something,” said Haskell Library Board President Sylvie Boudreau, as she placed her feet on the black line representing the border between Canada and the United States drawn on the floor of the building.
She added, “When the announcement was made, there was very strong anger on both sides.”
Canadians’ access to the Haskell Library without customary border procedures was originally affected by tightened border controls following the events of September 11, 2001 in the United States, and then suspended due to health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic.
But it was the Trump administration that effectively put an end to the symbol of Canadian-American unity in this small town with a population of about 2,800 people, located an hour and a half south of Montreal.
US Customs and Border Protection now prohibits Canadians from using the few meters of sidewalk located on US territory that provide access to the library, justifying its decision by “the continuing increase in illegal activities across the border.”
“We were always united”
This decision sparked resentment among residents on both sides of the border.
Jonas Horsky, a 41-year-old French-American who frequented the Victorian library for its bilingual content, says he feels “nostalgic for the past.”
The man, who came in his car from Derby Lane in the border state of Vermont, adds, “We were always united and exchanged visits, but now we carry our passports with us. This was not the case before.”
As for Canadian Erica Masuto, a monitor at Stansted English High School, having to enter through what was previously known as the library emergency exit creates a “strange” feeling. “The symbolic dimension of the decision is what bothers me,” she says. “Why this sudden feeling of mistrust?”
“Nothing but a physical end”
The Stansted Library case reflects the new reality of relations between Canada and the United States.
President Trump followed up his threats to annex the northern neighbor of the United States with a trade war with Canada that he launched immediately after his return to the White House and continued for months. The day before yesterday, Thursday, he suddenly decided to stop trade negotiations between the two countries.
The previous day, Prime Minister Mark Carney reiterated his new slogan, “Our relationship with the United States will never be the same.”
These tensions in the highest political circles affect daily life. Last June, Statistics Canada noted a “significant change” in the travel habits of Canadians, as it recorded a “significant decrease” in their visits to the United States.
Retired Mark Samson, when he came to pick up his wife, who works in the Haskell Library, confirms what the numbers indicate, and says, “We no longer go to the United States,” even though it is very close.
But residents of the border region confirm that they are confident that this interruption is only temporary.
“I think things will return to normal if the government changes on the other side of the border,” Samson says.
Sylvie Boudreau sees it as “nothing but a physical end” to the library, adding, “From the people’s point of view, what happened led to the strengthening of friendship, unity, and a sense of belonging to the community.”