If you’re upset about U. S. President Donald Trump’s decision to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America,” it’s likely that an American in your community feels the same way – if not more strongly.
Many Americans who have settled in Canada are calling this move embarrassing and even “childish.”
Ben Davis, a retired law professor, remarked that Trump’s executive order to change the lake’s name is “so beneath the office of the United States president.”
“And obviously it’s another one of his distractions of the day, but it’s just pitiful,” Davis said.
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He became a permanent resident of Canada after moving from Virginia in February 2025 and has been living in Quebec since then because that’s where his wife is from.
Ben Davis is shown in this undated photo – THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout – Ben Davis (Mandatory Credit)
Davis pointed out that Lake Ontario has been known by that name since it was referenced in the 1794 Canandaigua Treaty signed by George Washington and the Six Nations following the American Revolution. Changing its name more than 230 years later is simply “nonsense,” he stated.
“The name was good enough for George Washington and I don’t see why it’s not good enough for Donald Trump.”
There are over a million Americans living in Canada according to 2023 estimates from the Association of Americans Resident Overseas; this includes long-term visa holders and dual citizens.
Dawna E. Wade, who lives with her wife in Annapolis Royal, N. S., thinks Trump’s push for changing Lake Ontario’s name is utterly ridiculous.
“It’s not his to rename,” she said. “And even if it were in the purview of the United States, he doesn’t get to do it unilaterally.”
Trump issued this order amid rising tensions between Canada and the U. S., which came after trade talks fell apart and insults were exchanged between him and Ontario Premier Doug Ford regarding tariffs. This executive order only applies within the United States and has been largely disregarded in Canada.
Both Ford and Prime Minister Mark Carney have declared that this large body of water shared by both countries will always be known as Lake Ontario no matter what Trump decides to call it.
A recent Ipsos/Reuters poll revealed that many people within America also disapprove of renaming the lake; only 14 percent of approximately 1,000 surveyed Americans expressed support for such a change.
For Wade, separating herself from America means much more than just geographical names.
She explained that she and her wife relocated to Canada from North Carolina back in May because they felt unsafe living in America due to their sexual orientation, Jewish faith, and progressive political beliefs.
Wade holds Canadian citizenship through descent; she was born in Los Angeles but spent most of her life residing in America. Prior to moving permanently, she had only visited Canada a few times while her wife had never been there before making their final decision.
She mentioned that their transition has gone very well so far.
“We have been not only welcomed but truly embraced. People are not only kind but they are helpful,” she noted. “I don’t know that I had any expectations before we moved, but our experience has far surpassed anything that I could have imagined.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford, right, and Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff unveil a sign for Lake Ontario at Fifty Point Conservation Area in Grimsby, Ont., on Saturday Aug. 29, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Keito Newman
Chris Palermo, an American residing in Hamilton with his Canadian spouse called Trump’s plan to change Lake Ontario’s name a “useless” knee-jerk reaction stemming from failed negotiations.
He expressed disappointment toward Google and Apple for updating their maps with the new lake designation for U. S. users instead of standing firm against this decision.
Palermo moved here three years ago from Long Island New York; he remarked how support for Trump’s “outrageous actions” seems to be rapidly dwindling even among those who used to strongly support him amid rising costs driven by trade disputes along with America’s conflict with Iran.
Palermo added that moves like renaming Gulf of Mexico or Lake Ontario might be strategies meant to distract attention away from domestic issues faced by Trump’s administration.
“Every time there is a groundswell of opposition concerning Epstein files or war-related topics or affordability issues something outrageous occurs as diversion,” he stated..
Ontario Premier Doug Ford, right, and Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff unveil a sign for Lake Ontario at Fifty Point Conservation Area in Grimsby, Ont., on Saturday Aug. 29, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Keito Newman
Chris Palermo, an American residing in Hamilton with his Canadian spouse called Trump’s plan to change Lake Ontario’s name a “useless” knee-jerk reaction stemming from failed negotiations.
He expressed disappointment toward Google and Apple for updating their maps with the new lake designation for U. S. users instead of standing firm against this decision.
Palermo moved here three years ago from Long Island New York; he remarked how support for Trump’s “outrageous actions” seems to be rapidly dwindling even among those who used to strongly support him amid rising costs driven by trade disputes along with America’s conflict with Iran.
Palermo added that moves like renaming Gulf of Mexico or Lake Ontario might be strategies meant to distract attention away from domestic issues faced by Trump’s administration.“Every time there is a groundswell of opposition concerning Epstein files or war-related topics or affordability issues something outrageous occurs as diversion,” he stated..
