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Justin Trudeau apologized Wednesday for wearing brownface while dressed as Aladdin at an Arabian Night party when he was a teacher.

The bombshell photo showing Trudeau in brownface makeup, wearing a turban and surrounded by women was published by Time magazine and instantly tarnished the Liberal leader’s bona fides as a champion of inclusivity and tolerance.

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“I dressed up in an Aladdin costume and put makeup on. I shouldn’t have done that. I should have known better, but I didn’t, and I’m really sorry,” he said.

“It was something that I didn’t think was racist at the time, but now I recognize, it was something racist to do,” Trudeau said in a late night press conference on his campaign plane. “It was a dumb thing to do, I’m disappointed in myself, I’m pissed off at myself for having done it. I wish I hadn’t done it, but I did it, and I apologize for it.”

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He also admitted performing a version of the Harry Belafonte Banana Boat Song (Day-O) while wearing “makeup.”