Angry Canadians plan to boycott American goods

Following the implementation of Donald Trump's 25% tariff on Canadian goods, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada would retaliate by applying a 25% tariff on American goods sold in the country.

During his speech announcing the measure, Trudeau essentially urged Canadians to start a grass-roots boycott of American goods, saying,
"It might mean checking the labels at the supermarket and picking Canadian-made products. It might mean opting for Canadian rye over Kentucky bourbon, or foregoing Florida orange juice altogether. It might mean changing your summer vacation plans to stay here in Canada."

The trade wars between Canada and the United States will mean hardship for the citizens of both nations, and Canadians are royally peeved, and rightfully so.

But are Canadians really willing to give up their beloved American products? Well, according to CBC News, many are. The news outlet reports that Canadians have begun organizing efforts to counteract American tariffs by buying Canadian and boycotting products from the United States.

CBC spoke to several Canadians who said they were making lists of American products to avoid buying and expressed their anti-American sentiments to the news channel. For example, Matthias Neill, a dual Canadian-American citizen, told CBC News in Toronto he plans to boycott all American-made products, adding, "I've never felt more anti-American in my life."

The CBC also spoke to Don Profit, who owns an independent supermarket in Ottawa. He told the news outlet that he was putting "Made in Canada" signs up in his store to highlight Canadian products making it easier for shoppers to choose local.

Profit also told CBC News, "Whatever is labelled Canadian, it's going to be [the] choice for me, even if it's not a preference," adding, "While the tariffs are on, I'm going to boycott American products."

The anti-American sentiment is indeed alive and well in Canada. Much more so than it has been in recent years, and it is all thanks to Trump's tariffs. As reported by CTV News, on February 1, at a Senators hockey game in Ottawa, Canadians booed the Star Spangled Banner as it was played before the Senator faced off against the Minnesota Wild.

Some Canadians are so angry that they have even cancelled plans to visit the United States. For example, Reuters spoke to Mike Davies of British Columbia, who told the news outlet, "To have Americans insult Canada has got my back up. … I think every Canadian is just disgusted, right? I just think (the tariffs are) treachery."

Davies told Reuters that even founded a Facebook group encouraging people to boycott American goods, cancelled his Netflix subscription and is trying not to use Amazon. He added that he had plans to visit a friend in North Carolina, but now he will not go, saying, "We're not going to America at all."