When the World Health Organization lifted their controversial advisory against non-essential travel to Toronto, it signaled to the world
the Canadian metropolis had returned to normal. But to the 5 million citizens of Toronto, things were never anything but. On the
streets of Toronto it was business as usual, with no evidence of SARS in Toronto's gay village or downtown core, according to a press
release. Though reports from the international media constructed Toronto as a city under quarantine, these reports, along with the
WHO's travel advisory, contradicted not only the reality on Toronto's streets, but the scientific evidence compiled by other
International health experts.
'In Toronto, the disease is very contained,' said Julie Geberding, head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
'It's in travelers, it's in the healthcare workers who have taken care of them, and one group of people who went to a religious meeting
there. But they're not seeing it pop up unexpectedly in other parts of the community.' Because the disease was contained early on,
with Toronto healthcare professionals able to track each case back to the original carrier, SARS has been contained in isolated
healthcare facilities.
Of the 5 million people in the Greater Toronto Area, 345 have contracted SARS. Twenty-one of the infected died from the disease
with two thirds of the victims more than 70 years old.
Gay attractions and events have remained packed. Entertainers at the alterna-queer night Vazaleen recently poked fun at the
hype by wearing the infamous mask on stage themselves, and demonstrated their 'bravery' when they unmasked themselves. 'I got
calls from friends in the USA asking me how bad is it?' says Michael Schwarz, publisher of local gay magazine fab. 'I have yet to see
anyone wearing a mask or know of anyone who is infected.'
Dr. Colin D'Cunha, Ontario's Commissioner of Public Health and Ontario's chief medical health officer, is blunt with his prognosis.
'Toronto continues to be a safe place. Anyone who's traveling to Toronto, either for business or pleasure, should be reassured that it
is safe to do so.'