Sylvie Boudreau, a retiree in the small Canadian town of Stanstead, has gained international attention after the U.S. barred Canadians from entering the Haskell Free Library and Opera House. This library, straddling the U.S.-Canada border, has long been a symbol of unity. The decision shocked residents and has sparked numerous interviews with Boudreau, reflecting the complexities of border relations exacerbated by recent U.S. policies under the Trump administration. The situation illustrates how local communities are affected by broader geopolitical changes.
In mid-March, Boudreau received an email from the U.S. Office of Customs and Border Protection with the subject line Big Changes: the U.S. government had unilaterally decided to bar Canadians from accessing the library's main entrance.
The only sign of division is a thick black tape running across the floor that indicates which part of the world map you're standing on.
Over the last month, it has become a living symbol of the complex situation that Donald Trump's administration has created for the residents of the two neighboring nations.
Sylvie Boudreau figures that in three weeks, she's been interviewed 50 times, sometimes for international publications, highlighting the unusual circumstances of a small-town retiree.
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