A man who attended an B次元官网网址淎rabian NightsB次元官网网址� gala held by a private school in Vancouver says no one besides Justin Trudeau attended in skin-darkening makeup B次元官网网址� but no one else was dressed as Aladdin, either.
Wayne Hamill went to the 2001 party because his kids went to West Point Grey Academy and he said the future Liberal leaderB次元官网网址檚 costume was B次元官网网址済reatB次元官网网址� and in keeping with the theme.
Other attendees, including other white people, were dressed as belly dancers or wearing saris or veils, Hamill said. He doesnB次元官网网址檛 recall anyone being offended by TrudeauB次元官网网址檚 costume or makeup.
B次元官网网址淗e didnB次元官网网址檛 do anything out of the ordinary. ThatB次元官网网址檚 what he did. He was a drama teacher,B次元官网网址� said Hamill, who is white. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a costume and it was in the context of the theme of the party.B次元官网网址�
Trudeau after photographs from the event surfaced along with other images of him made up in brownface or blackface. He said he had a blind spot because of his privilege and he deeply regrets behaviour he now recognizes as racist.
Numerous Canadians of colour, including NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and Indigenous federal candidates, have said TrudeauB次元官网网址檚 use of dark face paint . Trudeau said Friday he would call Singh to personally apologize.
West Point Grey Academy released a statement Thursday saying its 2001 gala was organized by a culturally diverse group of parent volunteers and was intended to be celebratory and respectful. However, it said, it recognizes that cultural sensitivities have evolved over the past 18 years.
Sunny Khurana, a turban-wearing Sikh, also attended the party and was photographed with Trudeau.
He said Thursday he didnB次元官网网址檛 view the costume as racist and the school had no tolerance for discrimination.
Hamill, a real estate agent, said heB次元官网网址檚 not a Trudeau supporter but he believes the uproar is unfair. He said he never once, over the years, thought of coming forward with a yearbook photo to B次元官网网址渆xposeB次元官网网址� Trudeau for his costume at the event.
B次元官网网址淓xpose him for what? For being a good costume-dresser?B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 so taken out of context. ItB次元官网网址檚 applying todayB次元官网网址檚 standards to yesterdayB次元官网网址檚 actions. B次元官网网址� At the time, it wasnB次元官网网址檛 as much of an issue to do that.B次元官网网址�
He said Trudeau, who was 29 at the time, was a very expressive, enthusiastic and friendly teacher. Hamill also said the student population was diverse and included kids of South Asian, Middle Eastern, East Asian and First Nations descent.
Trudeau wrote in his 2014 memoir, B次元官网网址淐ommon Ground,B次元官网网址� that teaching at West Point Grey gave him new insights into the B次元官网网址減rivileged livesB次元官网网址� of private-school students that he didnB次元官网网址檛 glean from his own advantaged upbringing.
B次元官网网址淲henever I discuss the problem of income inequality in our society, I think about the children and their families I met when teaching at that school. The parents I encountered at parent-teacher nights were successful, hard-working people, but their wealth gave some of them an excessive sense of entitlement,B次元官网网址� he wrote.
B次元官网网址淎nd many of the students had little exposure to or understanding of the larger society around them or the challenges faced by ordinary people.B次元官网网址�
Laura Kane, The Canadian Press
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