Canadian International Air Show ‘Promotes the Culture of War,’ Protestors Say

By Gilbert Ngabo, Toronto Star, September 4, 2022

Protest is planned Sunday in downtown Toronto over show’s effects on people who’ve lived in war zones as well as its environmental effects.

The Canadian International Air Show has become an annual summer tradition — 73 years and counting — and so have calls to abolish it for its potential trauma-triggering effect on people with lived experience in war zones, as well as environmental damage it can instigate.

The show, which sees a number of fighter jets fly over Toronto for the last three days of the Canadian National Exhibition, purports to display the country’s military history while recognizing its military personnel and veterans, and inspiring the next generation of pilots. But detractors say the show does more harm than good, both for the environment and for the downtown population — some of whom are recent immigrants from countries with war history and fresh memories of air bombings.

Dozens of activists are expected to take part in a protest against the air show this Sunday in downtown Toronto, carrying posters that display anti-war messages, opposition to the use of fighter jets and calls to make Canada a “zone for peace.”

Read the rest and take a poll on it at the Toronto Star.

See also this story from City News.

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