Months after a British Columbia man’s social media invite to Americans went viral, hundreds showed up in Nanaimo, B.C., over the weekend to show their support for Canada.
Tod Maffin floated the idea to Americans in February, posting a video to TikTok in which he encouraged them to visit his hometown of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island — and thousands of people responded with interest.
His goal, Maffin said, was to create a bridge between the two countries at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated threats to make Canada the 51st state, and the ongoing tariff war, had spiked political tensions.
Over the weekend, hundreds of Americans took Maffin up on his offer and made the trip across the border to attend Nanaimo Infusion, a festival created specifically to welcome the new visitors.
Many of them were apologetic and expressed support for Canada.
“I don’t want a trade war with Canada. I don’t want to increase tensions across the border … we’re all people just trying to live our lives, regardless of what the people at the top are trying to do,” said American Tom Schnetter.
Schnetter and his friend Zach Prigger are both from Washington state, but said it’s their first time in Canada.
“As things keep progressing, it’s like watching a trainwreck, you know?” Schnetter said of the U.S. president’s actions. “Like, where, when is this going to end? When does this stop?
“Things will take a very long time to get back to the way they were, if they ever will,” he added. “You know, it’s like they say — if you nail nails into a fence, even if you pull it out, the fence still has holes in it.”
Americans are descending on Nanaimo this weekend, after a local resident took to social media to invite them to visit the B.C. city as a sign of solidarity with Canada. CBC’s Liam Britten headed to Nanaimo to speak with the visitors.
Festival draws hundreds
Maffin — a digital marketer, business journalist, and a former CBC radio host and producer — said he was heartened by the response to his invite, having previously told CBC News he expected perhaps a dozen Americans to heed his call.
By his count, over 500 people — a mix of locals and visitors — showed up to the event in Nanaimo, a city in eastern Vancouver Island around 100 kilometres north of Victoria.
“It is remarkable to me that hundreds and hundreds of Americans would come out and support Canada so concretely with their presence, with their dollars, with everything,” an emotional Maffin said on Saturday. “It’s just, it’s overwhelming.”
Local vendors, including food trucks and farmers, showed up for the weekend event — which included a pub crawl and visits to local businesses — and a group photo was taken of the people who attended.
“I think as a patriotic Canadian and someone very proud of this country and its values, I feel very sorry for my American friends and neighbours,” said Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog. “But you know, this will pass.”
Americans express interest in moving
The festival drew attendees from U.S. states close to B.C. like Washington and Oregon — but some attendees came from as far away as North Carolina and central Texas.
Partners Rachael Smith-Taylor and Lisa Owens, both nurses from Belton, Texas, said the visit to Nanaimo came as they figure out the next stage of their lives, given the concern for 2SLGBTQ+ rights in America under Trump.
“One of the reasons why I wanted to come here, besides whales and waterfalls, is I could actually hold her hand and not be afraid,” Smith-Taylor told CBC News.
Smith-Taylor and Owens said that, once they mentioned they were nurses, the people of Nanaimo immediately mentioned that they need more health-care staff — and they even got a tour of the local hospital.
Amid a push from the B.C. government to add more U.S.-trained health-care staff in the province, the couple said they’ve started looking into the process of becoming registered in Canada.
“I know there’s a lot going around wanting this to become the 51st state … most of America does not feel the same way about that,” Owens said. “It’s been very shocking, this last 90 days.
“I was kind of glad to be here, to hopefully instill into some of the Canadians, that we don’t all feel that way,” she added.
