In a political statement against President Trump’s new immigration moves, Toronto students will no longer take school trips to the United States, the district announced late last week.
“We do not make this decision lightly, but given the uncertainty of these new travel restrictions and when they may come into effect, if at all, we strongly believe that our students should not be placed into these situations of potentially being turned away that the border,” the Toronto District School Board said in a statement.
Right now, about 900 Toronto students have scheduled trips to the United States. The Toronto District School Board said it would not cancel these existing plans, but it also would not schedule any new trips.
The Trump administration seeks to limit travel for citizens of six Muslim-majority countries. The school district said although it was likely all students would be able to cross the border under that policy, it made the decision because of the precedent the travel ban sets.
The school district said its decision “strikes a balance between our equity and inclusion commitments as a school board, while not canceling already-approved trips for which a financial loss would be incurred.”
Activist Shaun King highlighted the decision in a Facebook post over the weekend. “We are now that country,” he wrote. “World class cities are afraid to allow their loved ones [to] step foot into our nation.”
— Jillian Kay Melchior writes for Heat Street and is a fellow for the Steamboat Institute and the Independent Women’s Forum.