Welcome to Windsor, Canada's most American city
What is the most American city in Canada?
Windsor, Ontario, was the most persuasive answer according to our listeners, whom we asked last week.
And according to writer Shawn Micallef, who was born and raised in Canada's southern-most city, it's the only acceptable contender for Canada's most American city.
"It's this odd part of Ontario that projects into the heart of the midwest" says Micallef, author of the new book Frontier City: Toronto on the Verge of Greatness.
People in Windsor watch Detroit local news as religiously as they watch the CBC or read the newspaper. We used to subscribe to the Windsor Star newspaper as well as the Detroit Free Press. They were both delivered to our house, so we had this on-the-ground knowledge of that city and its suburbs.- Shawn Micallef
Windsor is a city, Micallef says, where everyone usually has their passport on hand because they are very likely to make a quick trip across the border.
It's also a city, he says, where there was once a Canadian Tire that used to display on their wall the number of Detroit Red Wing mud flaps they sold versus Toronto Maple Leafs flaps, and the number was always split basically 50-50.
"The loyalties in Windsor are certainly for sure Canadian, but maybe the spiritual loyalty is split between the two."
Also, Windsor has different CanCon rules from the rest of the country, Micallef says.
Because radio stations in Windsor were struggling to keep their listeners, who were tuning into the Detroit stations to hear the latest American hits, the percentage of Canadian content required has always been a little less than the rest of the country.
"They didn't have to play as much Corey Hart in the '80s as places up the 401 did," Micallef laughs.
Micallef also thinks there are some other things the rest of the country should know about Windsor: it's fun, friendly, and it's actually worth visiting — so don't just pass through it on your way to the U.S.
"Windsor has always had a good scene that's been in the shadow of Detroit. It's a very friendly place, a good working class town."