[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 113 (Tuesday, June 29, 2021)]
[House]
[Page H3248]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         THE UNITED STATES-CANADA BORDER NEEDS TO SAFELY REOPEN

  (Mr. HIGGINS of New York asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. HIGGINS of New York. Mr. Speaker, for 34 years my community of 
Buffalo, New York, and our Canadian neighbors in Fort Erie, Ontario, 
would mark the first week of July with the Friendship Festival.
  This event that invites citizens of both countries to cross our 
shared border and celebrate with music, culture, food, and festivities 
highlights the strong and lasting bond between the United States and 
Canada.
  There will be no cross-border celebration this year on Canada Day and 
Independence Day. Not due to the pandemic, but due to the failure of 
both countries to plan for a safe reopening of the U.S.-Canadian 
border.
  For friends and families living along the northern border, crossing 
isn't an annual event, it is a way of life.
  Vaccines provide the bridge that allows people to come together 
again.
  We need leadership to open those bridges and let us reunite.

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