The Scandals of Justin Trudeau – Explained
The world-famous Prime Minister known for his charming personality and his progressive, ‘woke’ ideals has found himself in hot waters. In the past, the Prime Minister, has proudly claimed to be a feminist, pushed legislation to close the pay gap between men and women, has personally welcomed refugees from Syria to the country, and has issued formal apologies on account of the Canadian government for the treatment of LGBTQ and indigenous people.
However, his public image was marred recently when he came under fire for what are known as the two biggest scandals of his administration: the SNC-Lavalin case and Blackface. The two cases threaten the chances of his re-election in the federal elections taking place in October 2019.
The SNC-Lavalin Case in a Nutshell – An Introduction
The case is centred around the assertion that Jody Wilson-Raybould, his former attorney general, was ‘improperly’ pressurised by a handful of Trudeau’s closest advisors to put a stop to the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin, a renowned Canadian engineering firm over allegations of fraud and bribery.
The scandal has proved to be politically costly; Trudeau’s long-time friend and closest advisor, Gerald Butts resigned and Jody Wilson-Raybould quit as attorney general. The scandal has proven to be extremely unpopular for the party in power. Moreover, Jane Philpott, the Treasury Board president also resigned, stating that she had lost confidence in the government’s ability to handle an inquiry into the accusations.
The SNC-Lavalin Case in a Nutshell – The Company Under Focus
SNC-Lavalin is a massive engineering firm based in Montreal. It employs about 50,000 people across the world, with 3400 in Quebec alone.
The company has been charged with paying 48 million Canadian dollars’ worth of bribes to Muammar Gaddafi’s family in Libya in an effort to strengthen lucrative contracts. The bribery has been pinned down in the timeframe of 2001 – 2011. If the accusations are proven to be true, SNC-Lavalin would be hindered from bidding on federal projects for 10 years.
The company executive pushed for a ‘deferred prosecution agreement’ that will allow them to pay a fine if they undergo criminal prosecution, but there would be no ban on bidding of contracts. Nevertheless, a trial was held.
The scandal centres around the fact that Trudeau, his advisors, and the finance minister have been charged with pressuring Wilson-Raybould to wade in and ask the prosecutors to accept the deferred prosecution agreement. She refused to do so on account of her faith in the judgement of her legal team.
The SNC-Lavalin Case in a Nutshell – Jody Wilson-Raybould
The former attorney-general delivered a searing testimony to the justice committee as she addressed the scandal.
In her opening statement, she states: “I experienced a consistent and sustained effort by many people within the government seeking to politically interfere in the exercise of prosecutorial discretion in my role as the attorney general of Canada in an inappropriate effort.”
She speaks of being ‘barraged’ and ‘hounded’ by the members of the government to acquiesce. She also said that the pressure to change her mind included issuance of ‘veiled threats’ by advisors that she was on the track to challenging Trudeau.
Wilson-Raybould details that it was appropriate for ministers and the staff to speak to her about protecting jobs; it was however improper of them to ask her to make decisions on the basis of political considerations.
The former attorney general also refers to the allegations that Trudeau lobbied her, and that she felt compelled to tell him that what he was asking of her was not appropriate. She pins the disagreement down to the result of the mid-January cabinet reshuffle.
She concludes by saying, “I was taught to always hold true to your core values, principles and to act with integrity. I come from a long line of matriarchs and I am a truth-teller in accordance with the laws and traditions of our big house. This is who I am and who I always will be.”
The SNC-Lavalin Case in a Nutshell – Justin Trudeau
The Prime Minister has not denied speaking to Jody Wilson-Raybould and her team about SNC-Lavalin. He has gone on to say that all discussions between the two parties were within bounds and conducted with utmost respect.
He went on to reiterate his belief that on account of being the Prime Minister, his job also entails the protection of jobs of thousands of Canadians, referring to the likelihood of loss of jobs in the event that the company got convicted.
In the aftermath, there was pushback for the Prime Minister to resign but he did not acquiesce.
The SNC-Lavalin Case in a Nutshell – The Backlash
The Ethics Commissioner’s report found that Trudeau broke Canada’s conflict of interest rules by trying to orchestrate an out-of-court settlement for the SNC-Lavalin. While his ministers still support him, there was backlash from the general public.
Margaret Wente, a writer at The Globe and Mail wrote: “The most disturbing sight on display in this report is the senior staff of the PMO plotting with SNC staff, senior executives from the Bank of Montreal and former Supreme Court justices to order the world as they knew it should be ordered. And when Jody Wilson-Raybould refused to play along, Mr. Trudeau sacked her.”
The Blackface Ordeal – An Introduction
On 18th September 2019, Time Magazine published a photo of Justin Trudeau wearing brownface to an Arabian Nights themed gala at the private school he was teaching at in spring 2001.
In the picture, he is seen wearing a robe and a turban, with his face, hands, and neck darkened completely. The costume was described by him as an ‘Aladdin costume’. He is standing with a group of women, none of whom are in blackface. The picture was published in the yearbook of West Point Grey Academy in 2001.
There have been other instances where he has worn blackface as well. Trudeau has worn blackface ‘makeup’ for a high school talent show to sing ‘Day-O’, a famous Jamaican folk song sung by Harry Belafonte, an African American singer. This one was detailed by the Prime Minister himself in a press conference following Time magazine’s article. It was the only one recounted when he was asked about other instances he had worn blackface.
However, following the conference, a grainy video emerged showing Trudeau in blackface, raising his hands in the air and laughing. The video is said to be from the early 1990s.
The Blackface Ordeal – Justin Trudeau
In the press conference following the publishing of the photo, Trudeau said, “I deeply regret that I did that. I should have known better, but I didn’t. … I’m deeply sorry that I did that. I take responsibility for my decision to do that. It was something that I didn’t think was racist at the time. I’m pissed off with myself for having done it.” He also added that he knows now that it was racist.
The Blackface Ordeal – The issue with Blackface
Wearing any coloured face that is not yours, whether it is brown, red, or yellow, is racist. This is because People of Colour have had a long, painful history. Blackface has been associated with negative representations of POC.
White actors would darken their skin with polish to look black in minstrel shows. While these were meant to be funny for white audiences, they were demeaning for African Americans as they fortified ideas of superiority linked with being white.
They also promote stereotypes that dehumanise POC, as wearing blackface is essentially using someone’s skin colour as a costume.
The Blackface Ordeal – The Public and the Government
Jagmeet Singh, a Sikh politician in Canada’s New Democratic party, stated, “We see one Mr. Trudeau in public. I’ll be honest with you, he seems really nice, really friendly, very warm in public. But behind closed doors he seems like a different Mr. Trudeau. Who is the real Mr. Trudeau? Is it the one behind closed doors? The one when all the cameras are turned off and when no one sees, is that the real Mr. Trudeau? Because more and more that seems like it is.”
Andrew Scheer, a member of the Conservative party and Trudeau’s political rival said he was ‘extremely shocked and disappointed’ when he heard of the photos. He stated, “Wearing brownface is an act of open mockery and racism. It was just as racist in 2001 as it is in 2019. What Canadians saw this evening was someone with a complete lack of judgment and integrity and someone who’s not fit to govern this county.”
The Aftermath of the Scandals
The resignation of Jane Philpott and Jody Wilson-Raybould was a blow to Trudeau’s agenda of promoting feminism and giving indigenous people a platform. Wilson-Reybould is an indigenous woman, and Philpott had been a minister of Indigenous Services previously.
The revelation has thrown into question his leadership philosophy, which has championed transparency, openness, and inclusion. His promotion of indigenous rights seems to have failed. The question that arises is whether his charm will earn him a tenure in the upcoming elections. Trudeau’s faulty record thus looms over his chances of becoming Prime Minister again.
