WATCH: Justin Trudeau confronted on blackface past by two Black children
The girls asked him pointed questions about why he wore the makeup at a party years ago
Last month Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau began to face backlash for not only wearing blackface at a party when he was a young teacher at a private school but also refusing to disclose how many times he has worn it. But this week two young Black girls surprisingly took him to task in a confrontation he probably didn’t see coming.
According to The Daily Beast, the awkward moment occurred during an interview on Jessi Cruickshank’s Facebook Watch show New Mom, Who Dis?
READ MORE: Justin Trudeau blasted for refusing to say how many times he has worn blackface
After being asked by the girls, “Why did you paint your face brown?” a stunned Trudeau replied, “Oh, um, it was something I shouldn’t have done because it hurt people. It’s not something that you should do, and that is something I learned. I didn’t know it back then, but I know it now, and I’m sorry I hurt people.”
“But did you paint your nose and your hands brown?” the girls continued, unphased by his squirming.
This innocent but incredibly pointed questioning prompted Trudeau to concede, “Um-hum… Yeah… And it was the wrong thing to do, and I had a good conversation with my kids about taking responsibility for mistakes and making sure that we’re always sticking up for each other and not teasing each other, and being respectful towards each other.”
READ MORE: Brownface, blackface photos cause scandal for Justin Trudeau
“Sorry that I hurt you as well,” he continued. “I’m sorry that I hurt kids who get to face teasing and discrimination because of the color of their skin. That’s just not right in this country, or anywhere around the world. We all have to work together to make sure it doesn’t happen, okay?”
The show bills itself as, “Real Kids. Real Questions,” and in this instance they certainly delivered on that promise. You can check out the full exchange below.
