World-famous motor race The Indy 500 is the latest target of Balloons Blow, a US-based environmental campaign group which focuses on putting an end to balloon releases.
The latest billboard was unveiled just last week, taking on an Indianapolis institution. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway (home of the the Indy 500) has released thousands of balloons as part of the opening festivities almost every year since 1947. The billboard calls on the IMS to put an end to the decades-old tradition.
Although scheduled to be on display until 14 April 2019, the billboard has already been taken down after less than 24 hours for being an ‘attack ad’. Balloons Blow assert that it will be up again soon.
“It seemed like the emails and the phone calls and social media posts weren’t getting their attention,” said Danielle Vosburgh, co-founder of Balloons Blow and the driving force behind the billboard.
“The balloon release remains a part of the Indianapolis 500 pre-race programme,” said Alex Damron, the Speedway’s director of communications.
“However, we continue listening to and evaluating feedback from multiple perspectives on the topic. We’re reaching out to several stakeholders and talking with experts to fully understand the impact of this practice and determine its status in the years ahead.”
