I’m sorry you went through that, too. Were you also traveling with a band?
We had similar tactics applied by Border Agents in Arizona just past the California-Arizona state border last September. This time, I was driving and I knew they were full of shit when they surrounded us, talked about bringing dogs (they always threaten with dogs?), and claimed they smelled drugs in the vehicle. It didn’t go on for as long, they didn’t make us get out or go through our stuff, and copping to something we didn’t do didn’t enter my head, but it felt too familiar.
The stakes in these situations were low, we knew this was par for the course when crossing these borders and it was STILL stressful and frightening. I can so easily see how people in more serious situations break when under more intense pressure.
I wasn't traveling with a band, just my dog! I was moving from Florida to Alaska, trying to catch the ferry out of Prince Rupert. Weather turned me around in Banff and I went to plan B and drove back into the US to Bellingham to catch the ferry there. Had no trouble at all crossing back into the US at the same crossing. My dog ended up with a gastric dilatation-volvulus the night before I got on the ferry and had to be euthanized. Not the best trip but living in Alaska was amazing.
We had similar tactics applied by Border Agents in Arizona just past the California-Arizona state border last September. This time, I was driving and I knew they were full of shit when they surrounded us, talked about bringing dogs (they always threaten with dogs?), and claimed they smelled drugs in the vehicle. It didn’t go on for as long, they didn’t make us get out or go through our stuff, and copping to something we didn’t do didn’t enter my head, but it felt too familiar.
The stakes in these situations were low, we knew this was par for the course when crossing these borders and it was STILL stressful and frightening. I can so easily see how people in more serious situations break when under more intense pressure.