By Michael Powell - Deschamps

So, earlier this month I had an adventure. I decided, after feeling increasingly freaked out about the direction of this country, to take the train up to Vancouver to visit friends for a couple weeks.

As I started my journey, it became clear that I was not the only individual on edge. At King Street Station in Seattle, they showed a video on how to respond to a mass shooter, with a pretty detailed video showing a shooter running in to the train station and then an older man taking him out with a briefcase.

As I journeyed on the train, the paranoia just got reinforced. There were armed guards on the train. Another video, much less detailed, illustrated how to respond to an "emergency," the "emergency" in question certainly looking like a mass shooting. The paranoia could be felt.

As I got to the border, before I said as much as a word, I was directed toward customs. I am told often that I look vaguely Middle Eastern. I am tan and of Norwegian and French descent. I naturally grow a beard within days and people often ask what country I am from. Given that I had not said or done anything, profiling was certainly occurring.

As it became clear after having had all my stuff searched through and answering a litany of questions, I had nothing to hide. I had a valid passport and ID but was told that I needed more - I needed documentation of employment, prior housing and a host of other bureaucratic requirements.

On the Canadian website, such material is actually listed as "additional things that may have helped" - these border guards were acting like they were required. I was as cooperative as I could be without being defiant (it was not the situation at which to be defiant) but still defending myself. The guards got a bit defensive as it became clear that I had nothing suspicious going on - making comments about the way I packed my bags as if that was a legal basis for not letting me visit my friends.

When I told friends I hoped to see about what occurred, one friend sent me a story about a Muslim man, visiting the U.S., who got exactly the same treatment I did. I have had a handful of law enforcement experiences in my life - this was definitely the worst. My girlfriend quite literally passed away after a long battle with addiction and illness in my apartment and I was eating lunch with my mom within an hour of me calling 911. As one friend told me, however, "American police are a bit more professional than Canadian border patrol."

As I had my stuff searched and answered questions to the point it was obvious I had nothing suspicious going on, they let their guard down moderately and got me a bottle of water and snacks but I still ended up having to take a trip back. The trip back was paid for by the Canadian government.

I'm planning a visit back this December - with details provided by a friend in Vancouver who is an immigration attorney. In addition to another in the litany of American mass shootings, the political race in Canada was heating up with Stephen Harper openly Muslim baiting while Justin Trudeau made photo ops in mosques in full traditional Pakistani attire. The border patrol asked about my Hebrew tattoos and looked quite a bit at my kuffiyeh, which is adorned in Stars of David embroidery and Hebrew lettering - I'm certain that Canadian border patrol is exactly the demographic of fascists that a man like Harper appeals to and that said fascists could actually be so dumb and ignorant as to not know the difference between Hebrew and Arabic.