JULY 1 • 2021 | 25

T

he ongoing border clo-
sure between the U.S.
and Canada continues to
impact Jewish communities in
both countries. These effects are
felt especially hard in Windsor
and Detroit, where Jewish life is
often intertwined with families
living on both sides of the bor-
der and Metro Detroit residents
attending school in Windsor and
vice-versa.
Since March 2020, the border
has been closed to nonessential
travel due to the COVID-19
crisis. Over the past 15 months,
Jewish residents of Metro Detroit
and Windsor have struggled
with the restrictions. With the
border closure extended until
July 21, rumors about a possible
border reopening in the coming
weeks or months, Jewish indi-
viduals are hopeful that life can
soon resume as it once was.
“Windsor is a border city that
is intrinsically linked to our
neighbors across the river in
Detroit, Michigan,
” the Windsor
Jewish Federation & Community
Centre said in a statement. “Since
March 2020, our province’s res-
idents, including members of
the Windsor Jewish community,
have suffered untold mental,
financial and educational hard-
ship due to ongoing COVID-19
related lockdowns, the after-
effects of which will reverberate
for many years to come.
”
Dr.
Mike Malowitz, president
of the federation and commu-
nity center, has personally felt
the impacts of the ongoing
border closure. He hasn’t been

able to see his granddaughter
in months, who lives across the
border. “The pleasure of pick-
ing up our granddaughter at
school, taking her to gymnastics
class and watching her perform
her exercises is now gone,
” he
explains.
Malowitz’s family, like many
others living on both sides of the
border, haven’t been able to cele-
brate Passover, Shabbat dinners,
birthdays, Chanukah and other
events together. While they’ve
turned to virtual get-togethers,
Malowitz says electronics can’t
replace the in-person interac-
tions of special occasions.
“These events were taken
away,
” he says, “and reduced to
seeing family on a Zoom square
on the computer screen.
”
Malowitz says one of the
toughest hurdles to overcome
within the Jewish community is
the emotional pain caused by not
being able to attend funerals in
person. “Family members were
not allowed to cross the border
to attend the funerals of loved
ones and were reduced to watch-
ing the proceedings by Zoom
since the number of attendees
was limited by quarantine rules,
”
he says. “The comfort of family
and friends provided by the shi-
vah period cannot be replaced by
prayers on a Zoom screen.
”
Bar and bat mitzvahs,
Malowitz adds, were also signifi-
cantly impacted by the border
closure. For these once-in-a-life-
time opportunities, some fami-
lies could not attend the services
of loved ones living across the

border, while other families had
to forego the events altogether,
postponed for a later date.
“The joys of simchahs such
as bar and bat mitzvahs have
been challenged by the in-person
limits imposed by safety rules,
”
Malowitz describes.

UPCOMING BREAK?
However, Jewish residents in
Metro Detroit and Windsor
may have good news to look
forward to soon as talks
between the U.S. and Canadian
governments continue. There
are also efforts to get more
Windsor residents vaccinated
with surplus COVID-19 vac-
cines from Michigan, which
lawmakers hope can be done
at the border without the need

to leave one’s car or quarantine
upon return.
Currently, Canada has a strict
14-day quarantine policy for
unvaccinated residents who are
exempt from the border clo-
sure. The country is now in the
process of easing restrictions
on vaccinated residents as well.
Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens is
also pushing in favor of receiving
surplus vaccines from Michigan
with a new proposal.
“
As the protection from vacci-
nations increases and the num-
ber of COVID cases continues
to decline, it is hoped that both
family and community func-
tions will once again resume,
”
Malowitz says, “so that life can
begin with a familiar degree of
normalcy.
”

After a year of border closure,
Detroit and Windsor residents
hope for reopening.

At the Border

“IT IS HOPED THAT BOTH FAMILY
AND COMMUNITY FUNCTIONS

WILL ONCE AGAIN RESUME.”

— DR. MIKE MALOWITZ

ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Mike Malowitz and
his granddaughter
Lilah

COURTESY OF MIKE MALOWITZ