In September 2019, the day after news broke that Justin Trudeau had worn brownface, I was teaching journalism students who didn't know what to think about this very Canadian story. One said he knew much about America’s history of racism but virtually nothing about Canada’s history of racism. That concerned me deeply. But, having covered equity-focused issues as a journalist in both the US and Canada, I wasn’t surprised by my students’ reactions. That an American publication
broke the brownface story before a Canadian one did wasn’t surprising either. The historical reluctance to discuss race and how it has shaped Canada has repeatedly left the public and our institutions ill-equipped to confront racial inequity head-on. As York University Education Professor Carl James told me, “Our discussion of race in Canada is totally inadequate."
In “Anti-Asian Racism Is More than a Trending Topic,” I wrote about how, for too
long, Canadians have taken their cues from American activists, media, and other public figures on how to talk about racism in this country.
It is essential to invest in understanding systemic racism in a uniquely Canadian context. We won’t be able to come up with effective solutions to combat it otherwise.
