MONTREAL — A Montreal woman who is a Canadian citizen says she was barred from entering the United States and told to get a visa.
Manpreet Kooner says she was turned away at a crossing along the Quebec-Vermont border on Sunday and informed she needed a valid visa.
Kooner, 30, is of Indian descent and was born in Montreal to parents who came to India from Canada in the 1960s.
She says she's perplexed given she was travelling on a Canadian passport and has no criminal record. Kooner says she was travelling with two friends — both white — who were not questioned by border officials.
Kooner is just the latest person to be turned away at the border in recent months for various reasons.
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokeswoman said today the department can't comment on individual admissibility inspections, but noted that possession of a valid travel document does not guarantee entry to the United States.
Kooner's story was brought up in the House of Commons on Monday as the NDP peppered the Liberals with questions about her case and about allegations of racial profiling at the border.
Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale told reporters that each country has the sovereign right to control its borders.
"We also have the high expectation that all of our citizens will be treated respectfully and in a fair manner," Goodale added.
He said Montreal-area MP Anju Dhillon is looking into the Kooner case and will seek a remedy to the situation.
