A Sudanese man hopped out of a taxi just before daybreak, a duffle bag slung over his shoulder as he headed for the U.S. - Canadian border.
Within seconds, the man, who was bravingnegative 6 degrees Celsius (21 degrees Fahrenheit) weather, was confronted by a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officer who shined her flashlight on him as he crossed into Hemmingford, Quebec, from Champlain, New York.
"Stop! You have to stop," the officer insisted, grabbing his arm.
Over and over, the man, who did not provide his name, muttered as if speaking to himself, "I need to be safe. I need to be safe. I just want to be safe." He kept walking, desperately trying to plow past the officer.
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"I explain to them, 'You will be arrested, you will be handcuffed, you will be brought to immigration and held there for who knows how long.' They say, 'That's OK. We want to be in Canada. We have to be in Canada. We have no other choice.'"
Seymour, of Plattsburgh, New York, said he voted for Trump. But, he added, "I feel bad for these people" referring to his customers who are trying to reach Canada.
"They have kids - a lot of them newborn babies. It doesn't take them much time to cross the border," he said. "But they have to go down a ditch and then climb over a big snow bank, lugging all they have left. Many customers leave their child's car seat behind. It's just too much to carry."