Donald Cherry has painted himself into a corner..The hockey commentator melted Twitter Sunday after comments on his Coach’s Corner show on Hockey Night in Canada were considered racist..He said he is seeing less people wearing poppies and seemed to blame immigrants to Canada..“You people … you love our way of life, you love our milk and honey, at least you can pay a couple bucks for a poppy or something like that. These guys paid for your way of life that you enjoy in Canada, these guys paid the biggest price,” Cherry said as his sidekick Ron MacLean looked on..Twitter immediately erupted with people calling him a racist and to be fired..Paula Simons, an independent senator from Alberta, condemned the sentiment behind Cherry’s remarks..“We don’t honour the sacrifice of those who died in battle by sowing division or distrust,” Simons wrote..The Canadian Broadcast Standards council said they have received so many complaints about Cherry they are no longer accepting any more..“The CBSC has received a large number of very similar complaints concerning Coach’s Corner broadcast on CBC (Sportsnet) on November 9, 2019, exceeding the CBSC’s technical processing capacities. Accordingly, while the CBSC will be dealing with this broadcast under its normal process, it is not able to accept any further complaints, said a note on their website..Two Liberal cabinet ministers also waded into the fray including Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan..“Last night, Don Cherry made comments that are wrong in describing Canadians’ remembrance of our veterans. His remarks don’t recognize the contribution of Canada’s diverse communities. I hope we can turn this into a moment where we can learn about about all who have served,” the Vancouver MP tweeted..Patty Hajdu, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development & Labour tweeted: “On Remembrance Day all Canadians collectively remember the soldiers that made the ultimate sacrifice regardless of where they come from. Don Cherry’s comments are completely unacceptable and do not represent the values of Canadians..Cherry supporters blasted back that his comment were not as racist as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appearing in blackface several times..Sunday morning, the apologies began as #FireDonCherry and #DonCherryMustGo were still trending topics on Twitter..Sportsnet, called his comments offensive, and said that they “do not represent our values and what we stand for as a network. We have spoken with Don about the severity of this issue and we sincerely apologize for these divisive remarks,” Bart Yabsley, president of Sportsnet, said in a statement..MacLean addressed the issue at the start of his Hometown Hockey show Sunday night and also took to Twitter..“During last night’s broadcast, Don made comments that were hurtful and prejudiced and I wish I had handled myself differently. It was a divisive moment and I am truly upset with myself for allowing it,” he said on Twitter..“I have worked with Don for 30 years, and we both love hockey. But last night, I know we failed you. I see hockey as part of what unites us. I have the honour of travelling across our country to celebrate Canada’s game, and our diversity is one of our country’s greatest strengths.”.Ironically, it’s not the first time Cherry, 85, seemed to single out immigrants for not wearing poppies..In an Nov. 17, 2017 Coach’s Corner said driving that day through downtown Toronto he didn’t see a single poppy..“You’d think they’d be happy being here and everything what a lovely country,” he said in comments that appear to have escaped twitter’s wrath..The story has garnered internation attention with England’s The Guardian and the New York Post tweeting the story..Coach’s Corner is still broadcast on CBC in a sub-licensing deal with Rogers Media, which owns Sportsnet.
Donald Cherry has painted himself into a corner..The hockey commentator melted Twitter Sunday after comments on his Coach’s Corner show on Hockey Night in Canada were considered racist..He said he is seeing less people wearing poppies and seemed to blame immigrants to Canada..“You people … you love our way of life, you love our milk and honey, at least you can pay a couple bucks for a poppy or something like that. These guys paid for your way of life that you enjoy in Canada, these guys paid the biggest price,” Cherry said as his sidekick Ron MacLean looked on..Twitter immediately erupted with people calling him a racist and to be fired..Paula Simons, an independent senator from Alberta, condemned the sentiment behind Cherry’s remarks..“We don’t honour the sacrifice of those who died in battle by sowing division or distrust,” Simons wrote..The Canadian Broadcast Standards council said they have received so many complaints about Cherry they are no longer accepting any more..“The CBSC has received a large number of very similar complaints concerning Coach’s Corner broadcast on CBC (Sportsnet) on November 9, 2019, exceeding the CBSC’s technical processing capacities. Accordingly, while the CBSC will be dealing with this broadcast under its normal process, it is not able to accept any further complaints, said a note on their website..Two Liberal cabinet ministers also waded into the fray including Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan..“Last night, Don Cherry made comments that are wrong in describing Canadians’ remembrance of our veterans. His remarks don’t recognize the contribution of Canada’s diverse communities. I hope we can turn this into a moment where we can learn about about all who have served,” the Vancouver MP tweeted..Patty Hajdu, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development & Labour tweeted: “On Remembrance Day all Canadians collectively remember the soldiers that made the ultimate sacrifice regardless of where they come from. Don Cherry’s comments are completely unacceptable and do not represent the values of Canadians..Cherry supporters blasted back that his comment were not as racist as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appearing in blackface several times..Sunday morning, the apologies began as #FireDonCherry and #DonCherryMustGo were still trending topics on Twitter..Sportsnet, called his comments offensive, and said that they “do not represent our values and what we stand for as a network. We have spoken with Don about the severity of this issue and we sincerely apologize for these divisive remarks,” Bart Yabsley, president of Sportsnet, said in a statement..MacLean addressed the issue at the start of his Hometown Hockey show Sunday night and also took to Twitter..“During last night’s broadcast, Don made comments that were hurtful and prejudiced and I wish I had handled myself differently. It was a divisive moment and I am truly upset with myself for allowing it,” he said on Twitter..“I have worked with Don for 30 years, and we both love hockey. But last night, I know we failed you. I see hockey as part of what unites us. I have the honour of travelling across our country to celebrate Canada’s game, and our diversity is one of our country’s greatest strengths.”.Ironically, it’s not the first time Cherry, 85, seemed to single out immigrants for not wearing poppies..In an Nov. 17, 2017 Coach’s Corner said driving that day through downtown Toronto he didn’t see a single poppy..“You’d think they’d be happy being here and everything what a lovely country,” he said in comments that appear to have escaped twitter’s wrath..The story has garnered internation attention with England’s The Guardian and the New York Post tweeting the story..Coach’s Corner is still broadcast on CBC in a sub-licensing deal with Rogers Media, which owns Sportsnet.
