Re: US-CBP Closes Border-Straddling Library Entrance to Canadidians

BTR1701 wrote:

STANSTEAD, Quebec (AP) — For more than 100 years, people
in Stanstead, Quebec have been able to walk into Derby
Line, Vermont to enter the border-straddling Haskell Free
Library and Opera House – no passport required.
 
https://ibb.co/3YNCz3BV
 
But municipal and library officials said on Friday that
U.S. authorities have unilaterally decided to end the
century-old unwritten agreement. Coming at a time of
heightened tensions between the two countries, the
decision is prompting an outpouring of emotion in
communities on both sides of the border, which in places
has been marked simply by flower pots.
 
Inside the library celebrated as a symbol of international
friendship, Pauline Lussier and Chris Blais put their arms
around each other's shoulders Friday as they stood on
either side of the line taped down the floor marking the
border. Lussier, a Canadian, and Blais, an American met
for the first time that day.
 
https://ibb.co/b5KW402g
 
"A line doesn't separate us, it never has," said Blais,
who held an American flag in her hands while Lussier held
a Canadian one.
 
"Our kids have gone back and forth over this border
without any problem at all... this is all going to change
now, and there's no reason for this," Blais added.
 
Once inside the library, Canadian and American citizens
have been able to mingle freely across the border line
drawn on the floor – as long as they return to the proper
country afterward. In 2016, then-president Barack Obama
hailed the symbolic importance of the library, built in
1901. "A resident of one of these border towns once said,
'We're two different countries, but we're like one big
town,'" Obama said.
 
A spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Border Protection,
CBP, confirmed that the divide is about to become more
pronounced. Starting in the coming days, only library card
holders and employees will be able to cross over from
Canada to enter the building through the main door on the
U.S. side.
 
And as of Oct. 1, no Canadians will be able to enter the
library via the United States without going through the
border checkpoint, though there will be exceptions for law
enforcement, emergency services, mail delivery, official
workers and those with disabilities.
 
The statement acknowledged the library as a "unique
landmark", but said the border agency was phasing in a new
approach for security reasons.
 
"Due to the library's location, and convenience of local
populations, CBP has allowed customers of the library to
access its sidewalk, without inspection, for decades," the
agency said in a statement. "However, during that time,
this area has witnessed a continued rise in illicit
cross-border activity."
 
It noted there have been a number of incidents in and
around the library that resulted in apprehensions in
recent years, including a person attempting to smuggle
firearms in the past year.
 
Town and library officials say Canadian visitors without a
library card will have to enter by a back door on the
Canadian side, across a muddy stretch of grass. The
library announced Friday that it was launching a GoFundMe
to raise the estimated $100,000 Canadian (US$69,000) it
will cost to build a sidewalk, new parking lot, and
wheelchair access.
 
 
https://apnews.com/article/canada-america-library-vermont-quebec-7c4851c705d18e0cc891c3ce085e15e4

Just a follow-up to the story.

As of yesterday, the library has received over $150,000
in donations to be used to add an entrance on the Canadian
side of the building plus a parking area on the Canadian
side.

Louise Penny, a Canadian author (of a mystery series I
enjoy) who lives in a nearby region of Quebec, contributed
$50,000 to the fund.

I hope that the Canadian patrons of the library can eventually
enjoy the facility without any additional hassles from the
customs and immigration folks, but I guess we'll see what
happens.

Nyssa, who hopes for the best, but these days figures on the
not-so-good happening instead