OTTAWA – The source of the first public photo of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in brownface says his sole motivation in providing the image to Time was his belief the public needed to see it.
Michael Adamson says he has never been a member of a political party and did not receive any payment for providing the photograph to the American magazine.
“I am not and have never been a member of a political party. I received no payment for releasing this photograph. My decision to provide it to Time Magazine was motivated solely by the belief that the Canadian public had a right to see it,” he said.
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Adamson says in a written statement that he was aware of gossip surrounding the existence of the photograph because of his position as “a past member of the (West Point Grey Academy) community.”
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Because of that association, he was able to provide a copy of the school yearbook to the Time reporter, Adamson says.
The revelation that Trudeau appeared publicly in blackface and brownface roiled the federal election campaign when the instances became public Sept. 19.
Adamson said he will not be making any more public comments on the issue.
A Globe and Mail report Friday said that his son, Bennet Tadashi Adamson, is friends with the lead Time reporter on the story, Anna Purna Kambhampaty.
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