Lots of folks in the States are talking after increased tensions between Canada and the U.S. flared over the past week, and that includes our friends just south of B.C. down in Bellingham.
We love talking about Bellingham because, as much as it pains residents, there’s still an affinity between the two regions.
Since U.S. President Donald Trump came into power and, more specifically, when he started to say embarrassing things about Canada, like making it the 51st state and imposing tariffs, travel to the U.S. has dropped dramatically.
It hasn’t stopped. This week, after it seemed hopeful that a trade deal between the two nations would be struck, it collapsed, and Trump made another bold move, signing an order to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America.
That didn’t go over well, and even Americans were pushing back against it.
What Bellingham residents are saying now
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Earlier this week, we shared a story about how Bellingham residents were responding to Prime Minister Mark Carney’s tariff response.
In a separate post on the Bellingham subreddit, someone had a message for “angry Canadian friends,” and it elicited quite a response from the community.
The original poster wrote, “When you look south, beyond the rolling hills south of the Fraser River, I know many of you clench your jaw and can’t help but think of recent events. Most of you are I am sure tempted to point to the behaviour of the worst of our country’s people and ask, ‘What the actual f**k?’ I ask that question every goddamn day, to be honest, not at anyone in particular.”
“Many of us in Bellingham have very direct, intimate ties to Canada. Family bonds. Decades of friendships and gatherings across borders. Mutual love and respect of the rugged environment [on] the Pacific coast and coastal mountains,” they added.
They went on to say that they were also enraged when the American “feds” began attacking Canada.
The Bellingham resident shared that many residents of the Washington region could just as easily be B.C. residents.
“Many of us who live here in Bellingham and surrounding areas near the border are here simply because of work or school circumstances and could have just as easily ended up living in Surrey, Abbotsford, Burnaby, PoCo, etc.,” they said.
The original poster offered solidarity with Canada, saying, “My family and I are all elbows up. Always have been, always will be. The line on the map means nothing to my family’s devotion to the community.”
In response to the post, most agreed, and several commenters apologized on behalf of the U.S. and its loudest and angriest Americans.
“I’m still supporting our local USA family businesses, because well you are family,” a Canadian shared in response.
“We hate hate hate everything going on, the rampant destruction of good people’s lives every day by the very worst most repugnant of humans who should never be allowed to manage a crosswalk section for school kids, let alone the wheels of this country,” another Washingtonian responded, adding, “We miss you.”
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It’s worth checking out the post and seeing some of the comments, but you may need a tissue, as there is clearly a lot of emotion between our two regions.
Canadians are feeling sentimental too. In response to one of our recent stories, a Vancouver reader said, “We should not let Trump divide us from our good neighbours.”
Canadian love at an American Taco Time
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While many Canadians have stopped travelling to the States and places like Bellingham, including B.C. residents who have told Daily Hive they will not go back while the orange man is in power, some are still travelling over, including lovers of American teriyaki.
In a separate post, someone shared a touching experience they had at a Bellingham Taco Time, of all places.
According to the Bellingham resident, they were at a Taco Time where they ordered $15 worth of food.
“I found out that the car ahead of me paid for my order, and the employee said that it was the ‘Canadian Kia Soul’ who did it. They have pretty flower decals on their rear window. So if that was you, thank you!!”
The Bellinghamster shared that they were in a rough patch, and that the kind Canadian really lifted their spirits and mood.