My complicated thoughts on Trudeau
DURING THE SECOND WEEK of his re-election campaign, Liberal Party leader, Justin Trudeau, admitted to wearing black/brownface after pictures surfaced in Time Magazine and Global News.
Time Magazine obtained a photograph from 2001 showing Trudeau wearing brownface at a party at the private school where he was a teacher. A couple hours later, Trudeau personally responded to the photograph and apologized for his behaviour. At this time, he also mentioned that there was another instance of his darkening his face for entertainment. Less than 12 hours later, Global News found a third instance of Trudeau wearing blackface in the 1990s.
When my best friend told me about Trudeau’s scandals, my reaction was a mix of shock and incredulity that made me audibly laugh. As a black woman, learning that anyone chose to put on blackface is disgusting and disappointing, but later learning that the images were from 2001 and the 1990s made me question my original feelings. Don’t get me wrong: what he did was wrong. But we have to acknowledge that context is important and he did it 20 to 30 years ago.
Think back to all the offensive things you did 20 years ago. I will be the first to admit that I did things in my past that were terrible. But I also like to think that I’ve grown, learned from my mistakes, and am now a different person. I would never now say anything as offensive as I did when I was younger because now have a better understanding of how actions can negatively affect communities of people.
We need to create an environment where people can acknowledge their faults and grow from them. Right now, being ashamed and hiding our past does nothing but create a ticking time-bomb for when news finally breaks. And, just as Trudeau did, we will beat ourselves up and overcompensate to show that we’re no longer the way we used to be; Trudeau specifically called Jagmeet Singh, the New Democratic Party leader, and apologized for his actions. I personally believe this was the worst thing for him to do. Apologizing to the only person of colour in the race segregates them more. In doing this, Trudeau stripped the respect from people of colour and shifted the focus to himself — again.
The public has a right to be angry and disappointed, and I cannot challenge the reaction or lived experience of anyone, but there also comes a time when someone’s past should be left in the past, so long as they can demonstrate how they learn from their actions and mistakes in the future.
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