WINDSOR, ONT.—A trustee at a southwestern Ontario school board says the board has cancelled a handful of school trips to the U.S. due to concerns of “safety and equity.”
Clara Howitt said the Greater Essex County District School Board, which covers Windsor, Ont., and the surrounding area, has cancelled all trips to the U.S. that were scheduled for February, along with a trip to Washington, D.C. in April.
She said the April trip was cancelled because it would have coincided with a march on Washington that is expected to be attended by half a million people.
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Howitt said the board was worried about students’ safety because of the size of the rally.
She said the February trips were cancelled because of concerns about equity.
While an executive order put in place by U.S. President Donald Trump banning travel from citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries is not currently in effect — and it didn’t affect citizens and permanent residents of Canada when it was being enforced — Howitt said the board feels things are still too uncertain.
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The board is being cautious because school trips have been affected before, Howitt said.
“There were buses detained for a significant period of time, and students turned away. That was shortly after 9/11,” she said. “So we’ve been in this circumstance before.”
She said the board is trying to prevent that from happening again.
Howitt said the cancellations are just an “interim” measure, and the board will re-evaluate going forward. She didn’t say when that would be.
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