Canadian NHL fans booed the Star Spangled Banner during an Ottawa Senators game on Saturday, hours after President Donald Trump announced stiff tariffs on Canada took effect. And they did not stop till the national anthem ended.
The crowd at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa showed their displeasure as the U.S. national anthem played—booing and heckling while singer Mandia began and ended her performance of the patriotic song, which is traditionally sung alongside "O, Canada" before every NHL game. This comes after Trump's ordered a 25% tariff on Canadian and Mexican imports and a 10% tariff on Chinese goods starting Tuesday, raising concerns of a major trade war.
Disrespecting Neighbor's National Anthem
As the Canadian-born singer began with the familiar lines, "Oh, say can you see," the boos quickly followed. Despite the boos, Mandia handled the situation with grace, delivering the anthem with such passion that it seemed to quiet the crowd into a moment of respect.
However, once she finished, a rumble could still be heard, with some fans grumbling, while a few others cheered in support of the U.S. Mandia awkwardly then looked down at the ground.
Saturday's game saw the Ottawa Senators, the home team, dominate the Minnesota Wild with a 6-0 victory.
Patriotic Canadians, upset over Trump's 25 percent tariff on all Canadian imports to the U.S.—a measure that also applies to Mexico—voiced their frustration during the event.
On Saturday night, the two North American countries retaliated after the tariffs were imposed, declaring that they would slap retaliatory tariffs on the United States.
Chinese goods, however, faced a comparatively lower 10 percent tariff. The U.S. will also impose a 10 percent tariff on energy products imported from Canada.
Canada and Mexico Retaliate
Canada plans to impose a 25 percent tariff on $155 billion worth of U.S. goods, including items such as beer, wine, bourbon, fruits and juices, vegetables, perfume, clothing, and footwear.
"Many of us will be deeply affected. A lot of people will go through dark times. We're asking you to support one another, to be there for your friends, your neighbors, and your fellow Canadians," he said, adding that it might be wise for the country to avoid American goods, such as Florida orange juice.
Trudeau criticized Trump's tariffs as a "threat against the entire nation" that would also lead to serious consequences for the United States.
"This is a choice that yes, will harm Canadians, but beyond that, it will have real consequences for you, the American people," Trudeau said.
"As I have consistently said, tariffs again against Canada will put your jobs at risk, potentially shutting down American auto assembly plants and other manufacturing facilities. They will raise costs for you, including food at the grocery stores and gas at the pump."
Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo also ordered retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. and condemned Trump's claim that the Mexican government has ties to criminal organizations and cartel members.
"If such an alliance exists anywhere, it is in the United States armories that sell high-powered weapons to these criminal groups, as demonstrated by the United States Department of Justice itself in January of this year," Sheinbaum said on X.
"If the United States government and its agencies wanted to address the serious consumption of fentanyl in their country, they could, for example, combat the sale of narcotics on the streets of their main cities, which they do not do, and the money laundering generated by this illegal activity that has done so much harm to their population."
