Trudeau On Trump: The Case Of The Curious Pause

It took Justin Trudeau 21 seconds before he could start talking about Trump’s handling of the George Floyd protests. Did you wonder why?

Transcript

00:00If you don't want to comment, what message do you think you're sending?

00:02You've been

00:30reluctant to comment on the words and actions of the U.S. President, but we do have Donald

00:35Trump now calling for military action against protesters.

00:38We saw protesters tear gas yesterday to make way for a presidential photo op.

00:42I'd like to ask you what you think about that, and if you don't want to comment, what message

00:45do you think you're sending?

01:08We all watch in horror and consternation what's going on in the United States.

01:15It is a time to pull people together, but it is a time to listen.

01:20It is a time to learn what injustices continue despite progress over years and decades.

01:30But it is a time for us as Canadians to recognize that we too have our challenges.

01:37That black Canadians and racialized Canadians face discrimination as a lived reality every

01:45single day.

01:48There is systemic discrimination in Canada, which means our systems treat Canadians of

01:54colour, Canadians who are racialized differently than they do others.

02:00It is something that many of us don't see, but it is something that is a lived reality

02:05for racialized Canadians.

02:10We need to see that, not just as a government and take action, but we need to see that as

02:18Canadians.

02:20We need to be allies in the fight against discrimination.

02:24We need to listen, we need to learn, and we need to work hard to fix – to figure out

02:30how we can be part of the solution on fixing things.

02:34This government has done a number of things over the past years, but there is lots more

02:39to do, and we will continue to do that, because we see – we see you, we see the discrimination

02:45that racialized Canadians live every single day.

02:48Why, though, are you so reluctant to comment directly on the words and the actions of the

03:07U.S. President?

03:12My job, as a Canadian Prime Minister, is to stand up for Canadians, to stand up for

03:19our interests, to stand up for our values.

03:23That is what I have done from the very beginning, and that is what I will continue to do.

03:30Canadians need a government that will be there for them, that will support them, and that

03:37will move us forward in the right direction, and I will do that.

03:42For more information, visit www.fema.gov