PEACE/WAR (peace over war)

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PEACE / WAR (peace over war)

By Mike Salisbury

A soft light pours out of the phonebooth onto the adjacent sidewalk. As you approach, you hear that familiar ringing. Even if you grew up with cell phones you know that sound… Someone is calling. Do you stop? Do you look inside? Do you answer the call?

You pick up the receiver and the ringing stops. The voice on the other end draws you into a philosophical discussion as poignant today as it was in 1725 when Immanuel Kant first wrote his essay on Perpetual Peace.

The glowing phonebooth on the street corner harkens back to a time not long ago when the payphone was the only way to reach out to loved ones while on the road, or call out for help in times of crisis. The escalating devastation of Ukraine has rekindled fear and anxiety for many around the planet as we grapple with the horrors of war in Europe once again. The ubiquitous payphone has all but disappeared from the urban landscape however its symbolism for connection, and indeed the place where Superman once emerged to save the day, remains deep in our cultural memory.

In the past the public payphone was almost exclusively used to make outbound calls. The incoming call reflects a fundamental reframing of peace; “working for peace, to end the war,” rather than “escalating the war, to win the peace.” Perhaps this fundamental shift is the superhero we need today.

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www.mikesalisbury.ca

@mikesalisbury.ca

Links

• Lumen Festival lumenfestival.ca

Organizer

City of Waterloo

Lumen is an annual, free, all-ages festival that is open to the public and run by the City of Waterloo’s Arts and Culture team, Create Waterloo. The event features the work of artists as they explore the interplay of light, art, and technology in installations located throughout uptown Waterloo.

Hosting 30+ visual, interactive, new media, and performance-based installations, the event is an exciting night in uptown not to be missed!