29-03-2025
‘The feeling was of friendship': Blaine border rallies meant to ease U.S.-Canada tensions
For the past few weeks, hundreds of Canadian and U.S. residents have participated in a weekly border rally in hopes of easing tensions from a trade war between the two governments, who have enjoyed friendship for decades as 'children of a common mother,' according to a slogan etched on one side of the Peace Arch.
They're meeting from noon to 2 p.m. Saturdays at Peace Arch State Park in Blaine, where visitors can stroll in a field that spans the border. Information about the gatherings is on the Facebook page Peace, Love and a Handshake.
Last Saturday's event resembled the end of a hockey game, where players greet each other on the ice to offer praise and settle any hard feelings.
'It was a powerful, moving thing,' Jeffrey Smith of Bellingham told The Herald.
Video from the event shows participants laughing and smiling as music played and drivers waiting to go through customs honked their horns. Many carried placards with slogans such as '(Heart) over hate.'
'We're kind of hoping that this message is not about politics. This is something that everyone can get behind,' Smith said in a phone interview.
Stories about the cross-border gatherings have been reported in Canadian media, including the CBC.
Mayor Mary Lou Steward of Blaine hopes the event catches on and visitors from both sides of the border return to patronizing businesses in the town of 6,232 that depends heavily on tourism.
Border crossings are down sharply since Feb. 1, when President Trump imposed wide-ranging tariffs on Canadian goods and sparked a trade war that left many Canadians feeling angry and betrayed at the U.S., an ally that they've supported through both world wars, the Sept. 11 terror attacks and beyond.
'The feeling was of friendship. Everyone was in a good mood,' Steward told The Herald in a phone interview. Steward was born in Ottawa and lived for many years in British Columbia before moving to the U.S.
'This resonates with people. There is this friendship. It's a little bit bruised right now, but we'll get back there,' she said.
