Crossing Into Canada!

Lynda picked Giavanni and me up at 6:30 in the morning at the Airbnb several of us were staying at for the past couple days. We packed our bags into her car, and we drove straight away toward the border. It was a very quick process getting into Canada. There were only a couple cars ahead of us. There was a huge line of cars coming the other way to cross into the US. Our hope was to cross early with less traffic and an easier time finding parking near the border and both of these wishes came true.

We parked close to the border and walked back across the Rainbow Bridge into the U.S. to meet everyone by 9 o’clock for the Activation in Niagara Falls. Walking into the U.S. was a lot faster than the folks in that huge line of cars waiting to cross were experiencing.

The Activation began at 9 o’clock with a group of singers and a drummer who drove here from Maryland just for this. The Washington Revels. They were wonderful, singing songs of freedom as well as several spirituals.

One of the speakers at the Activation pointed out that so much of history is similar to the heads of four presidents at Mount Rushmore. Set in stone, with a specific set of stories about them. But what about the stories of all the people who have done so much to create this country, to work for freedom and justice? And, from our perspective, what about the efforts by the current presidential administration to bury/change/outlaw aspects of history that highlight slavery, the Underground Railroad, racism, sexism and anything else that makes white people, and specifically white men, feel ashamed.

We with #FreedomWalk2026 say, let’s tell the whole truth about our nation’s history, our world’s history, the good as well as the horrific, and learn from it to create a better, more equitable and just nation and world for all of us.

I’m disappointed that I won’t be able to visit the Underground Railroad Museum in Niagara Falls. As has been the case throughout this pilgrimage, there’s simply not enough time for everything we would like to do. What’s interesting about this particular museum is that it features information on a distant Uncle of Tony’s and the role he played with the Underground Railroad.

As we get ready to walk over the Rainbow Bridge as a group, it’s 84° and rising, the “real feel” according to my weather app is 101°, and humidity is at 74%. We’re all glad it’s only half a mile to walk across.

Niagara Falls is as spectacular as every description I’ve ever heard or read. Seeing them from the Canadian side is a whole new experience for me. I’ve only seen it from the American side before today. And it just feels like more. More than anything I’ve heard. It’s just incredible watching all of that water, all that power coming over these falls. Listening to it, watching it, the mist rising. It’s amazing to me that a lot of people have gone over these falls in a barrel of some sort and some have survived. It’s clear to me that that’s only happening on the Canadian section of the Falls. The American section is all boulders at the bottom.

Ninety percent of the water that feeds Niagara Falls comes from four of the five Great Lakes (Erie, Superior, Michigan, Huron). The water from these lakes collectively contains about 18% of the world’s surface fresh water. More than six million cubic feet of water go over the falls every minute during peak daytime hours. If you want to head down a quick rabbit hole for more information about these incredible falls, click HERE and HERE.

We next walked as a large group across the Rainbow Bridge into Canada. It feels incredibly special to cross the border on Canada Day, a day each year when Canadians reflect on what it means to be Canadian, to share what makes them proud and to celebrate the richness of Canadian land, their diversity, culture, contributions, and above all, Canadian people.

Ruth, Lesli & Sharon from WUSA9 were with us yesterday as well as this morning. They crossed the border with us, doing interviews with Tony and me and Giavanni and others until we crossed through customs into Canada. Then they interviewed Tony one last time before they headed back along with several others who joined us today just for the crossing.

Tony, Al (the driver of the truck towing the Harriet Tubman statue in Canada), and Wesley Wofford (the sculptor of the statue) then crossed back over to the U.S. side to drive the statue across. That turned out to be quite an ordeal. Turns out the wrong paperwork had been submitted, but having Wesley there ultimately did the trick when he pointed out that he owned it, that it’s not for sale and whatever other assurances they needed. Wesley said the border agent was very friendly and it all worked out well.

Lynda, Giavanni, Venetia, Sofia and I went out to lunch and then to the park where a Canada Day celebration was taking place with booths and music and the statue was there when we arrived around 2:00pm. As has been the case everywhere the Harriet statue has been, lots of folks are amazed and take photos.

Lynda and I then drove Giavanni to the train where she headed for Toronto to meet up with a dear friend. We will meet up with her again once we get to Toronto. Lynda then drove me to the home of Robert and Margaret where I will be spending the next two nights. They live in an apartment building for people over 55. It’s a two-bedroom apartment but one of the rooms is an office. I did not realize initially that they were giving me their bedroom and sleeping on a fold out couch in the living room while I’m here. I objected to no avail. I’m really amazed and deeply grateful at the kindness we’ve been shown throughout this journey. Almost all of our support for overnight stays and meals have come from various Quaker communities. I’ve learned a lot about Quakers on this journey, attending my first Quaker meeting two months ago in Sandy Spring, and holding hands for a silent Quaker prayer before meals. All quite peaceful.

And it feels quite peaceful to be in Canada.

One final note: Below is a close-up photo of the image on the t-shirt I wore many times along #FreedomWalk2026, and as you can see in a couple photos above, I wore it today to cross into Canada.

I had this shirt made in honor of my beloved friend and co-author of Gather at the Table. The photo on the shirt was taken while we were in Tobago writing the first three chapters for our book. Sharon passed away in February, and I felt she was walking with us every step of the way.

Wearing this shirt also feels quite peaceful.