border visit, 1 march 2020

Sunday March 1st, 2020. Afternoon at Roxham Road, US.

A sunny afternoon but on the cool side. 14 people crossed while we were there: 7 adults and 7 children from four different countries. We  arrived at 3:45 after being delayed at the border by  visa paperwork (one of us is a permanent resident and needs a visa for the US). 

At 4 pm  two taxis arrived from two different companies with two families from Afghanistan who knew each other.  Altogether there were 4 adults and 7 children of all ages (from toddler to teenager). The first family had 3 daughters and the second 2 daughters and 2 sons. The men spoke English and one of them did most of the talking with the RCMP officer.  One of the men said to a volunteer that he recognized her because he had seen her on Youtube - probably a media interview.

As the families were crossing the  shuttle bus taxi  arrived with a lone passenger: a young woman with short green hair from Sierra Leone who was bare-legged wearing a sweater dress, running shoes and a light jacket. We gave her a hat and gloves and scarf which she accepted gladly. Right behind her another taxi arrived with a young man from Uganda who was warmly dressed. 

Finally,  just before 5  a taxi  arrived with a man from Yemen who refused gloves and rsuhed over  the border without hesitation. The RCMP officer had to repeat 'Stop' a few times so he could say his piece, which included 'You have the right to remain silent.'