How the Trump Administration’s Policies regarding Mexico and Canada impact Whatcom County

Please purchase tickets in advance by 6:00pm Sunday, April 20, here.

In a whirlwind first few months, the Trump Administration’s foreign and domestic policies have made significant impacts on social dynamics and the economy nationwide. Changes in Canadian and Mexican sentiment, tariffs, and stricter immigration and border policies have also made notable impacts in border communities like Whatcom County.

Drs. Laurie Trautman and LaTrelle Scherffius will explore how shifting policies are shaping a new narrative around U.S. border security. They will evaluate the history of the U.S./Mexican border and share the current state of the hardening of the U.S./Canadian border. Will Nexus go away? Will the gates close at the Peace Arch? Join us as they explore how past policies on the southern border might indicate what the future of policies on the northern border could look like, and the impacts those changes could have on border communities including Whatcom County.

Dr. Laurie Trautman is the Director of the Border Policy Research Institute at Western Washington University, and serves as one of the nation’s top experts on the Canada-US border and associated border policies. While she focuses primarily on the ‘Cascadia’ region of Washington–British Columbia, she also collaborates in research both binationally and internationally to advance policy solutions that balance cross-border mobility with efficiency and security. In addition to partnering with faculty and students, she has working relationships with the private sector and government agencies. A regular contributor to the media, her latest (co-authored) book, “When the World Closed its Doors: The Covid-19 Tragedy and the Future of Borders,” explores the expanding use of international borders as a policy response to a growing range of crises – and the collateral damage that results. Laurie participates in working groups that are actively engaged in the U.S.–Canada relationship and is currently a Global Fellow with the Woodrow Wilson Center and a Fellow with the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. She holds a PhD in Geography from the University of Oregon, a MSc. from Montana State University, and a BA from Western Washington University in Environmental Economics.

LaTrelle Scherffius holds a B.A. in Latin American Studies/Political Science from Vanderbilt University and an M.A. and PhD (ABD) in History from Montana State University where she became fascinated with the history of the U.S. Mexico border wall, as both a physical barrier and symbolic gesture. At Montana State she taught Spanish and a popular class entitled “The US-Mexico Border: History, Politics and Culture”. The class culminated in annual student research trips that examined border militarization, asylum processes, and humanitarian aid. In addition to her teaching, she led a team of students that digitally preserved archival materials documenting the experiences of Salvadoran refugees living in camps in Honduras in the wake of the Salvadoran Civil War. She also holds a certificate degree in International Non-Profit Management from the Monterrey Institute in CA and has worked with NGOs in Nicaragua and along the US Mexico border. Recently retired and new to Bellingham, her passions include painting, along with boating and camping with her husband and giant Newfoundland dogs.