What I discovered at the Canadian Embassy
Images of U.S. leaders in the gallery of 501 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC
Our relationship with Canada no longer feels effortless.
Americans are watching closely the election now unfolding across the border.
Canadian tourists have dramatically cut air travel to the U.S.
Canadian sailors on Lake Ontario have voted to re-route racecourses to avoid U.S. waters “for safety and security.”
Yet when I walked past the Embassy of Canada to the U.S. in Washington, D.C., I noticed that its gallery was devoted entirely to our historic friendship.
I thought it might be interesting to stop and check out the exhibit.
A security guard greeted me with a smile in the foyer.
Many of us have taken Canada for granted, thinking of it as a sister country with nicer people, great hockey players and superior fish and chips.
During the Depression, my grandpa collected tolls at the Windsor tunnel because no one was hiring him as a house painter. In recent years, I’ve run through that tunnel during the Detroit Free Press International half-marathon.
Being in the building that houses the Canadian consulate felt so formal.
It was striking to see so many images of U.S. leaders and felt more like a display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.
In the art gallery, I stopped to watch video of old presidential press conferences with Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy and George W. Bush.
Gallery walls were filled with summaries of moments in time, written in English and French, both official languages of Canada. The words highlighted the longtime international partnership.
Part of the display included reference to the 9/11 terrorist attack on the U.S. and Canada’s support in the aftermath.
While the relationship between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Trump unraveled in 2025, the images in the gallery depict a period of collaboration between them.
I looked up the June 2019 White House memo released the day of the photo, which said the leaders would “discuss the shared economic interests of their countries” and “opportunities to drive more growth and create jobs in both the United States and Canada”
The following year, Trump took great pride in renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The White House issued a statement in 2020 saying, “The USMCA (United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement) is the largest, most significant, modern, and balanced trade agreement in history. All of our countries will benefit greatly.”
‘Necessity has made us allies’
Images and quotes of American leaders filled the gallery, including:
President John F. Kennedy in Ottawa (1961): “Geography has made us neighbors. History has made us friends. Economics has made us partner. And necessity has made us allies.”
President Ronald Reagan in Quebec City (1985): “We’re more than neighbors and allies; we are kin, who together have built the most productive relationship between any two countries in the world today.”
President Joe Biden in Ottawa (2023): “… We solve our differences in friendship and in good will because we both understand our interests are fundamentally aligned.”
At the end of my visit, I was exhausted and realized how complicated everything has become.
However, I didn’t leave before reviewing a display in the foyer that illustrated the economic ties between the U.S. and Canada. It had a detailed state-by-state breakdown of imports and exports and jobs.
In Michigan, 132,533 jobs are supported by exports to Canada. Members of Congress in districts most affected: Shri Thanedar, D-Detroit (16,820), Lisa McClain, R-Bruce Township (16,128), Hillary Scholten, D-Grand Rapids (11,989), Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor (11,508), Bill Huizenga, R-Holland Township (11,006), John James, R-Shelby Township (10,854), Tim Walberg, R-Tipton (10,794).
Since my visit to the embassy last month, Trump has changed the trade formula and implemented tariffs.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said in Niagara Falls, Ontario, on April 18 that Canada must rebuild its relationship. “The U.S. has changed priorities. We have to be clear-eyed …”
He referred to Trump’s talk of annexing Canada as a 51st state and said, “In a crisis, you got to plan for the worst, the worst is that the U.S. actually does want to take us over … They want our land, they want our resources, they want our water, they want our country.”
Carney, a former banker and economist sworn-in on March 14 after Justin Trudeau stepped down, leads in the polls heading into their April 28 parliamentary election.
As an American, everything feels so profoundly different now.
Presidents & Prime Ministers: The Legacy of Canada-U.S. Leadership exhibit runs through mid-May. (End date TBD, the embassy told Shifting Gears.) Hours: Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
More: My neighbor flies a Canadian flag
More: An unexpected encounter on a DC street
PS: As a proud member of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative, a roundup of world-class journalists, I hope you’ll check out the incredible news, commentary and features.
Thanks for reminding us of our good neighbor Canada.
Growing up in Detroit, we not only crossed the border , thru the tunnel, and in fact may have been serviced by Mr. Wall, we shopped there at the farmer’s mkt for fresh bread, the best cream puffs and Canadian bacon and eggs, and also played hockey at Windsor and Riverside arenas. Going to Canada was like heading out to Hamtramck! Just fun and good food. We rarely looked at it as a trip to another country, but rather a very friendly and positive place. Canada could never be a bad place or enemy territory. The Canadians are our best friends across the Detroit River and every other body of water. In my mind, that idiot in the W H will never ruin our beliefs and memories. Your visit to the embassy was enlightening, especially after what “he” has done with the U S A’s long established relationship to our friends. I truly hope they don’t give up on us. In three years or less, we’ll be back!
Thanks for another perfect story.
PEACE
Gregg Wilczynski