Edward James via Getty Images The CF Snowbirds fly past the CN Tower during the on 68th annual Canadian International Air Show during Canada's 150th anniversary year on Sept. 1, 2017 in Toronto, Ont.

Labour Day weekend in Toronto means the end of the summer, start of the school year and, unfortunately, enduring the Canadian International Airshow. During this past weekend, we were subjected to low-altitude flyovers from jets and formations of helicopters hovering over the city's downtown core and west end. This year included a supersonic fighter jet decorated in the "Canada 150" theme. This time last year, the authors received a lesson in Canadian nationalism after writing an opinion piece in the Toronto Star, followed by a more fleshed-out blog post here about the airshow and its effects on refugee newcomers. Published two months before Americans elected U.S. President Donald Trump and "alt-right" became a household term used to describe a movement of neo-Nazis and white supremacists, the reaction served as an introduction to some of the now-ubiquitous language and concepts of their political movement. To dismiss them simply as "trolls" or unthinking rednecks would be to make the same mistake of American progressives in the election. These are deep-seated views, and militant nationalism presents a real threat to Canadian values.

Air Show - Teaser from Maya Bastian on Vimeo. For proposing that resettling refugees created a duty of care, Craig was labelled a cuck, snowflake, sissy, libtard, SJW and (best of all) low test homo. The basic assumption came from a strange and patriarchal masculinity wherein concern for vulnerable people equated to a lack of commitment to an authentic, macho and militaristic Canadian identity. In all honesty, much of the early reaction was amusing. It was abundantly clear that the irony of employing the term snowflake as part of a hysterical reaction to a newspaper op-ed was lost on most of the Twitter trolls. It also traded on an irrational hatred of experts that fuelled Brexit and underpins the Trump administration's domestic and foreign policies. The now-floundering Rebel Media produced a hilarious monologue dressing Craig down as an "overeducated fool" and questioning the mysterious term "PhD candidate." The longer it went on, however, the less funny it became. Ignorant tweets were replaced by threatening emails, particularly when Maya joined the conversation. Maya was invited to wider media outlets, speaking on CBC's Metro Morning and discussing the issue on The National (Craig was relegated to Southern Ontario AM talk radio).

Melissa Renwick via Getty Images A CF Snowbirds fly-by roars through the sky during day one of the Canadian International Air Show in Marilyn Bell Park, Toronto, Ont.