This weekend, festivals celebrating Acadian and Creole culture will take over the Lafayette area, but some Canadians won’t be coming. Louisiana Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, a Republican, says their absence is because of rhetoric from the White House, and he’s asking President Donald Trump for an apology.
Since taking office in January for his second term, Trump has made several comments about Canada becoming the 51st state and has chastised the country in his ongoing international trade war. Just this week, in a meeting with the Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Trump cracked a joke about a “merger” of the two countries.
During a recent trip to the country to promote Louisiana tourism, Nungesser said many Canadians upset by Trump’s remarks told him they’re staying away from the U.S. — and Louisiana. Nungesser is now asking the president to apologize to Canadians in hopes of stopping the loss of tourism and diplomatic relations.
“They just pretty much said that they’re not coming back until he’s either out of office or he apologizes,” Nungesser said.
This weekend is the start of the Grand Reveil Acadien, or “Great Acadian Awakening,” near Lafayette, Louisiana. The 9-day festival happens every five years and celebrates the Acadians, descendants of early French settlers who came to Louisiana from Canada in the 1700s. It typically attracts many tourists from Canada, but some will not be making the trek this year because of Trump.
At least one tour company with plans of bringing four charter buses full of people canceled, according to Randal Menard, the president of the non-profit that puts on the festival.
“ After the tariffs and the president's comments, he let us know that people were dropping like flies,” Menard said.
Nungesser hasn’t heard back from the president and admits that an apology might not fully fix the issue. But he doesn’t know what else to do.
Tourism from Canada is down 20% to 30%, he said, and data from Canada shows a 25% drop in U.S. visits in July compared to last year.
He said the U.S. has become an unpopular destination for Canadians.
“Airlines still have the flights, but they're not advertising travel to America,” Nungesser said.
As for this weekend, Grand Reveil Acadien will go on and will be flooded with Louisiana French music and the smells of good ol’ Louisiana cooking. But locals will celebrate without many of their Canadian cousins, said Menard.
“I mean, we're gonna miss their presence. The program will go on, but it's not gonna be the same without their participation,” Menard said.
He hopes their absence will only be temporary.
