Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau allegedly wore brownface at a 2001 party that was documented in a yearbook photograph obtained by Time magazine.
The photo, which Time reported on Wednesday, was reportedly taken at an “Arabian Nights” gala at West Point Grey Academy, a private school where Trudeau was teaching at the time. The photo allegedly appears in the school’s 2000-2001 yearbook.
Zita Astravas, a spokesperson for the Liberal Party of Canada, confirmed to Time that Trudeau is in the picture.
In a briefing Wednesday night with reporters, Trudeau said he apologizes and takes responsibility for the photo and that it was racist to pose in brownface.
“I’m disappointed and pissed off at myself,” he said, adding that the incident calls for “important conversations” with colleagues, fellow candidates and Canadian citizens. He declined to say if resignation was on the table. He also disclosed that as a high school student he once dressed in costume and makeup and sang “Banana Boat Song (Day O).”
The brownface photo was taken at the school’s annual dinner, which had an “Arabian Nights” costume theme, Astravas said, adding that Trudeau “attended with friends and colleagues dressed as a character from ‘Aladdin.’”
Time reported that it obtained a copy of the photo from Michael Adamson, a Vancouver businessman who was part of the school’s community but not at the party in question. Adamson reportedly said he first saw the photo in July and believed it should be released to the public.
Time reported that many people at the gala dressed in costume for the dinner, but according to the yearbook’s six photographs of the event, Trudeau appeared to be the only attendee to paint his skin dark.
The incident surfaced just a month before Canadians head to the polls on Oct. 21. HuffPost Canada has the latest election updates.
Jagmeet Singh, leader of Canada’s New Democratic Party and the country’s first visible minority federal leader, called the photo “really insulting,” HuffPost Canada reported.
“We see one Mr. Trudeau in public. I’ll be honest with you, he seems pretty nice, right? Very friendly. Very warm in public,” Singh, who is Sikh, said at a Toronto town hall on Wednesday evening, according to HuffPost Canada. “But behind closed doors he seems like a very different Mr. Trudeau.”
American politicians have also come under fire for previous incidents of blackface. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam (D) apologized for — but also denied being in — a yearbook photo that was publicized earlier this year and showed one man in blackface and another in a Ku Klux Klan hood. Northam did not step down after the incident.
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (R) also found herself in hot water this year after a radio interview from the 1960s revealed that she had at one point worn blackface. Ivey apologized, but also did not step down.
HuffPost Canada’s Ryan Maloney contributed to reporting.
This article has been updated with a response from Trudeau.
- This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Comments