Accordion City has a reputation for its great blend of different nationalities, races and cultures, and it’s one of the reasons I love this place. However, there are times when the folks at City Hall, in their well-intentioned attempts to be inclusive, seem to be trying a little too hard. Case in point: how the stock photo, pictured below on the left, got photoshopped (and quite obviously, too) into the cover of the Toronto Fun Guide, pictured below on the right:
Speaking as a force of darkness – I much prefer being called that to “person of colour” – I find inclusivity-by-editing to be a little silly, if not condescending. C’mon, people! This is Toronto! If you really want a picture of an ethnically diverse family in this city, all you have to do is bring a camera to any busy public place – say any major shopping mall – and wait five minutes.
You could also just use the photo below, which features real Toronto people: a Filipino guy, an American Jewish woman and a giant pita from somewhere in the Mediterranean or Middle East. Three ethnicities, one pic!
The folks at Stillepost have been having fun re-photoshopping the Toronto Fun Guide. Here are my favourites, with my favourite one saved for last:
Oh, my sweet summer child, do you not know about the “Loofah Code” in The…
...and by that, I mean, being completely ignorant of the larger world outside the U.S.…
Wednesday, August 7, 1991: A sunny day at Toronto’s CNE Grandstand, and what a lineup:…
The cover painting says it all.
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Hilarious.
So Canadian.
So Toronto.
Then you turned it awesome.
You know what's worse? Parks & Rec are very happy with their results!!! (According to Mike Stafford on 640 Toronto Radio on yesterday's show)
way to go, Joey ... yes, funny/sad ... I guess they just didn't have 5 minutes to spare.
That's awesome. I love how they also recolored the hand at the left of the photo. Wouldn't that be the woman's hand?
Why is the pita flipping everyone off?
The Will Smith one is the best and actually better than the one they used.
Great blog post. Diversity in TO is under everyone's nose. The douches at City Hall who approved this cover are intellectually and socially lazy. They could have just snapped a pic of a group of people sitting in Nathan Phillips Square. Asked them for a release. And compensated them with fries from the truck of their choice.
They have to be happy at Parks & Rec.
Otherwise the guy who was forced to do this would have to take the heat.
The National Post just copied this post! (OK, maybe not exactly copy, but you posted it first).
Normally they'd have one of the kids sitting in a wheelchair.
The expression and eye line of the fellow that was put in looks sooo creepy and pervy.