“Violinist Itzhak Perlman complained of rough treatment at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport Monday after the disabled virtuoso said he was abandoned to lug his substantial carry-on through customs without assistance,” writes Tristin Hopper in Monday’s (3/31) National Post (Toronto, Canada). On Monday night, “Perlman was in Toronto to play a charity concert at the city’s Roy Thomson Hall. On Monday afternoon, the musician had just deplaned at Pearson airport and was met at the gate by a disability assistant…. ‘He walked me to an elevator and said “That’s where I’m leaving you,” ’ said Mr. Perlman. The violinist, riding a mobility scooter, gestured to his substantial carry-on luggage and questioned how he would get it through customs. Mr. Perlman said the employee replied, ‘Look, I’m not your personal assistant, you’re not paying me for this, you’re the one who chose to carry an extra bag with you.’ The musician then said he was forced to navigate the airport alone after awkwardly loading up his lap with luggage: two little bags, a larger bag, his crutches and his violin … Air Canada spokeswoman Angela Mah said … that the airline was ‘looking into the matter more closely.’ ”
Posted April 2, 2014
