As soon as the first inklings of a Trump win became noticeable during the evening of US election day, those opposing Trump began to look at their immigration options, particularly Canada, in huge numbers. The interest in leaving the US for another country was so massive that Canada’s immigration website crashed at 10:30 PM ET last night, hours before Trump was officially declared the winner of the US presidential contest. After the crash, there was only intermittent accessibility to the site, though access now appears to be restored. Canadians on social media had an uncharacteristic response to the increased interest in immigration from the US that seems just a tad ironic considering the circumstances – they want a wall on their southern border to keep out any would-be immigrants.
On this day in 1989 the Berlin Wall was torn down. On this day in 2016 #Canada will be building their very own: #Trump #Election2016 pic.twitter.com/cFrEL06yc9
— Nathan Davies (@Nathan_Davies85) 9 de noviembre de 2016
The wall will be a reality after all… Canada should get material ready ASAP… #USElection2016 #MeanwhileInCanada #Canada #ElectionNight pic.twitter.com/ShX8YOXiHj
— SabahatMS (@SabahatMS) 9 de noviembre de 2016
Canada is building a Wall & guess whose paying for it pic.twitter.com/soic6TS3lt
— LM (@Thelegendmac1) 9 de noviembre de 2016
Last year, Scott Walker, then a contender for the Republican nomination, suggested that a border wall along the Canadian border would be a “legitimate issue for us to look at.” However, Trump himself, who has famously promised to build a wall on the Mexican border, said that the construction of a wall on the US’ northern border would be “very hard” to accomplish. At the time, 41% of Americans supported the idea though there is currently no way of knowing if the US election results changed that.
Several Canadian journalists have supported the idea. Journalist Josh Freed argued the merits of a border wall in a column for the Montreal Gazette saying “we must build a wall between the US and us – and the time is now.” He called on Canadians to imagine the consequences of a Trump victory with “millions of shocked American Democrats and other Trump-dodgers fleeing across our Canadian border, seeking political refugee status here in the land of the free(ze).” The Globe and Mail also published an editorial that approved of the idea saying, “Walls have demonstrated their usefulness throughout history, from the Ming dynasty to Game of Thrones […] It’s time to build a wall – the higher the better.” Canadian citizens have also been vocal about the potential benefits of a wall, with one writing, “If a wall will keep American guns and other American bad habits out of Canada, I’m all for it.” Now with a Trump victory a reality, it remains to be seen if Canadians will push for the wall after all. If not, perhaps illegal immigration from the US will become the next big issue in Canadian politics, leading to the spread of so-called “Trumpmania” to the country’s northern neighbor.
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