‘ Don Cherry made remarks which were hurtful, discriminatory, which were flat out wrong’: Ron Macl ean, speaking on Cherry’s incendiary televised Comments about immigrants and poppies.
‘ discriminatory’
• Sportsnet apologized Sunday for hockey commentator Don Cherry’s televised rant about his belief that new immigrants don’t wear poppies, and in turn don’t support veterans — comments that sparked a swift backlash from the public, politicians and the NHL.
“Coach’ s Corner” co- host Ron Maclean doubled down on the station’s apology in a segment that aired at the beginning of a Sunday evening broadcast, saying Cherry’s remarks don’t represent his own views or those of parent company Rogers Media.
“Don Cherry made remarks which were hurtful, discriminatory, which were flat out wrong ... I owe you an apology, too. I sat there, did not catch it, did not respond,” Maclean said.
“Last night was a really great lesson to Don and me. We were wrong, and I sincerely apologize. I wanted to thank you for calling me and Don on that last night.”
A spokesman for Rogers did not immediately respond to a request for comment on why Cherry himself didn’t make the apology.
“Don’s discriminatory comments are offensive and they do not represent our values and what we stand for as a network,” Sportsnet president Bart Yabsley said in a statement earlier Sunday. “We have spoken with Don about the severity of this issue and we sincerely apologize for these divisive remarks.”
Cherry, 85, singled out new immigrants in Toronto and Mississauga, Ont., where he lives, for not honouring Canada’s veterans and dead soldiers during his weekly “Coach’s Corner” segment on Hockey Night in 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,” Cherry said.
“These guys paid for your way of life that you enjoy in Canada, these guys paid the biggest price.”
Cherry did not respond to multiple phone calls seeking comment.
The National Hockey League said in a statement that Cherry’s remarks were “offensive and contrary to the values we believe in.”
Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie called his comments “despicable.”
“We’re proud of diverse cultural heritage and we’ll always stand up for it,” she said on Twitter. “New immigrants enrich our country for the better. We’re all Canadians and wear our poppies proudly.”
Outrage was building online on Sunday with many on Twitter calling for Cherry to be fired.
Yet hundreds of social media users supported Cherry’s comments. Some said they wanted more people to wear poppies, while others pointed fingers at immigrants.