border visit january 7, 2018

Sunday,  January 7th  2018, 3.45 pm.  Roxham Road, Champlain, USA.   
About -13 C.  When we arrived an RCMP officer came to the edge of the border to talk to us and we had a friendly exchange. Later a single Francophone man of sub-saharan African origin arrived. The RCMP officer simply explained he would be arrested and could consider going to Lacolle to avoid arrest but there was no coercion. The man crossed over quickly.  Next a family of four from a Middle Eastern country arrived. They intended to cross the border  tomorrow and were coming to see it for themselves.  They asked us what would happen to them once they crossed into Canada and explained to us the dangers they had faced and why they wanted to seek asylum in Canada.  Then a large taxi van arrived with two families of four each:  a family from South Sudan with two young children and a Nigerian family consisting of a mother, two teenagers and a girl.   A second RCMP officer told them if they entered Canada and were refused asylum they would be deported back to their home countries (not necessarily true) but that if they went to the official crossing at Lacolle  they could be sent back to the USA and this was a better option for them.   His tone was aggressive and  the little girl started to cry.

Another taxi arrived with a Nigerian family of  parents,  2 teenagers and two young children. They were happy  and grateful to accept coats, scarves and mittens as they were not that warmly dressed. They had been living in the USA for sometime and the mother said to me : They no longer want us here.  The same RCMP officer gave them the same message about being deported back to their home country post refusal of asylum in Canada and encouraging them to go to Lacolle border.