On January 27, President Trump’s executive order on immigration blocked citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen, from entering the United States for 90 days. The order unleashed chaos as thousands of people protested in many cities across the US and even overseas. New York’s JFK Airport saw one of the largest crowds over the weekend.
President Trump took to Twitter to show he was not backing down: “Our country needs strong borders and extreme vetting, NOW. Look what is happening all over Europe and, indeed, the world – a horrible mess!”
On the other side of the US’ northern border, a different scenario was at play. In the wake of the shock from President Trump’s orders, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau said he would welcome refugees. Trudeau tweeted, “To those fleeing persecution, terror & war, Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith. Diversity is our strength,” adding the hashtag #WelcomeToCanada along with a photograph of him welcoming a Syrian refugee to the country last year.
According to the 2011 Canadian census, one out of five people in the country is foreign-born. Canada welcomed more than 39,670 Syrian refugees between November 2015 and the beginning of January 2017. In 2017, Canada plans to welcome 300,000 immigrants.
Canada’s liberal policies stand in stark contrast to President Trump’s plans for “making America great again.” Prime Minister Trudeau has been walking a fine line with the new Trump administration, avoiding direct criticism but nevertheless promoting his progressive policies. Trudeau also said he intends to talk to President Trump about the success of the refugee policy in Canada.
Whether PM Trudeau will be able to change President Trump’s views regarding refugees or not remains unclear; however, it is nevertheless a source of hope for the millions of refugees fleeing war and conflict in search of a peaceful and accepting environment.
Information obtained from:
http://time.com/4652711/justin-trudeau-canada-refugees/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/canadas-trudeau-welcomes-immigrants-sunny-twitter-message-223341176.html
Images obtained from:
http://globalnews.ca/news/3212041/justin-trudeau-refugees-donald-trump-travel-ban/
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2017/01/04/trudeau-trump-protectionism_n_13957390.html