What's the deal with blackface?

While The Secret Life of Canadawas on a production break last year, the Prime Minister of Canada was called out for wearing black and brown makeup as costume,something Justin Trudeau admits was "a racist thing to do."

In an episode recorded in January 2020 What's the deal with blackface?hosts Leah-Simone Bowen and Falen Johnson look to the past to try to figure out how why he's far from the only present-day person caught in theact.

They talk to Dr. Cheryl Thompson to find out when the practice began, what 'O Canada' has to do with it, and why it's been especially popular on university campuses. They also connect the dots between the history of blackface and today's pop culture. Kim Kardashian and her spray tan are on notice.

Please note: the episode contains strong language.

Listen for:

• How minstrel shows and blackface became one of North America's first forms of popular entertainment
• How the caricatures in minstrel shows from the pickaninny to the mammy are connected to today's stereotypes
• How the legacy of blackface is still playing out on the internet, from makeup trends to top memes

Key References:

• "Timeline of Canadian Blackface Incidents." Arts Against PostRacialism, 26 Sept. 2017,
• Jackson, Lauren Michele. "We Need to Talk About Digital Blackface in GIFs." Teen Vogue, Teen Vogue, 3 Aug. 2017.
• Harris, Robert. Song of a Nation: the Untold Story of Canada's National Anthem. McClelland and Stewart, 2019.
• Johnson, Stephen. Burnt Cork: Traditions and Legacies of Blackface Minstrelsy. Univ. of Massachusetts Press, 2012.
• Elliott, Stuart. "Uncle Ben, Board Chairman." The New York Times, The New York Times, 30 Mar. 2007,
• "EVERYBODY WANNA BE BLACK, BUT NOBODY WANNA BE BLACK." AFROPUNK, 12 Feb. 2019,
• Fessenden, Marissa. "Descendants of a Real Aunt Jemima Are Suing the Brand Bearing Her Name." Smithsonian.com, Smithsonian Institution, 7 Oct. 2014.
• Frost, Karolyn Smardz. Ive Got a Home in Glory Land: a Lost Tale of the Underground Railroad. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2007.