I have two conferences booked and paid for in the US this year. (I'm Canadian)
I am canceling the one in April.
The other is harder for me to cancel, as its my industry main conference for the year.
It will hurt me professionally, and fanatically not to go.
But stories like this, White woman with good paper work, and regular traveler to the USA (similar to myself), No criminal record, No apparent reason, no ability to call a lawyer, getting detained for weeks, is making me very nervous.
My company is considering starting our own local conference, outside the US, as an alternative. A expensive and distracting exercise that I would prefer not to have to do.
I am not worried about gun violence in the US at the moment.
I am worried about arbitrary detention without representation or recourse.
Shame