Liberal leader Justin Trudeau shown here on Wednesday following his scrum with reporters in which he apologized for two instances of him wearing brownface. (The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

red deer reacts

Trudeau’s racist gaffes highlight need to change systemic policy, local advocates say

Sep 20, 2019 | 10:54 AM

The actions of Liberal leader Justin Trudeau have led to an important conversation around why brown or blackface is inappropriate.

Time Magazine dropped a bombshell Wednesday night by releasing a photo of the then-29-year-old Trudeau seen in an Aladdin costume with his hands, face and neck darkened at a 2001 party. Since then, several more images have emerged depicting the Liberal leader in blackface.

Trudeau said his actions were “absolutely unacceptable” but was not definitive about exactly how many times he’s done it.

Deirdre Ashenhurst, co-chair of Red Deer’s Welcoming and Inclusive Communities Network (WIC), says Canadians should be critical of racially discriminatory actions, including those of Trudeau.

“I’ve lived with white privilege my whole life, so I don’t know what it’s like to be discriminated against when I’m walking down the street based on the colour of my skin, or to be passed over for a job because of my skin colour,” she admits.

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“I believe when you’re a white person and you’re putting on a coloured face or appropriating someone else’s culture, it’s a position of dominance where you’re saying ‘I can put this on and take it off and pretend to be you temporarily,’ but you have no idea what it’s like to live in those shoes.”

Sadia Khan, a WIC member who serves on several diversity-related committees, says seeing the images of Trudeau was painful.

“It was very triggering, and the first thought I had was ‘Not him too,’” she shared, acknowledging his reputation for promoting diversity.

“It brings back memories where racialized people are seen as inferior, and excluded, and tormented about headdresses, hijabs and turbans. But it’s about a lot more than a feeling of hurt; it’s about systemic laws, policies and culture that undermine Canada, and how those need to change.”

Khan believes there is hypocrisy and inconsistency at play whereby leaders and privileged white males come out like Trudeau did and ask for forgiveness, but hope for little to no consequences for their actions.

“As a person of colour, I feel like especially in the time of elections coming up, we need to step back — this is a lot to digest, but at the same time, this should not overshadow the good work that’s being done in Canada, the work this previous government has initiated,” she says.

“But we must continue these conversations of systemic policies and laws. We are not going to let the politicians use racism to divide us.”