cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/62991105
Hey everyone!
For those that have crossed the US / Canadian border recently: what was your experience when going through US customs? Were you harassed / detained? Any tips to prepare for crossing?
My SO and I were talking earlier about having some family come up from the US to Canada to visit us. I suggested maybe they should wait a bit due to the apparent unhinged behaviour of US Customs; However, while my SO doesn’t deny the stories, she believes they might be rare cases & blown out of proportion by the media. She found out that the Vancouver woman that was detained for ~2 weeks also had improper paperwork - which is often left out by the media. While the detainment duration is still totally unjustified, the initial detainment was caused by the improper paperwork.
So I’m reaching out to those that actually cross the border to see what’s actually going on; as the media can be fanatical sometimes.
Thanks in advance!
I crossed the border from Mexico into the US yesterday. Wait time was reasonable - maybe 45 min. They asked where I was coming from and where I was going, and if I had any produce. I said I had some food that was all bought in America (which was true). They checked, and told me they had to confiscate my avocados. I asked if I could just eat the avocados instead. They said that, really, they just needed to confiscate the avocado seeds. So I cut the avos open, gave them the seeds, and they sent me on my merry way.
On the whole, a bit annoying, but everyone was fairly polite and understanding. But for reference, I am a white US citizen, so ymmv.