Jian Ghomeshi Archives

Politics May 13, 2016

What did you think of Jian Ghomeshi’s trial?

The last year has been eye-opening, and not in a good way. The case of CBC radio broadcaster Jian Ghomeshi, who was accused of allegedly sexually assaulting and choking four women, really shed light on how messed up our justice system really is. It also demonstrated why so many women (and men) don’t report instances of sexual violence.

At the end of the day, Ghomeshi was found not guilty of four counts of sexual assault and one count of choking. The second round of the trials ended with an apology and a peace bond, which essentially is a contract that stipulates the accused must maintain good behaviour for a year and cannot contact the complainant. It is not an admission of guilt and it will result in no criminal record.

Ghomeshi was asked to apologize to the final complainant, Kathryn Borel. His apology mentions the power he held at the CBC and how, after serious consideration, he misunderstood how his actions could be interpreted: “I was a person in a position of authority and leadership, and I did not show the respect that I should have to Ms. Borel … I failed to understand how my words and actions would put a coworker who was younger than me, and in a junior position to mine, in an uncomfortable place.”

Borel decided to forego the trial after being presented with the option of a peace bond because it seemed “the clearest path to the truth.” In a statement following the trial, she said that “In a perfect world, people who commit sexual assault would be convicted for their crimes. Jian Ghomeshi is guilty of having done the things that I’ve outlined today. So when it was presented to me that the defence would be offering us an apology, I was prepared to forego the trial. It seemed like the clearest path to the truth. A trial would have maintained his lie, and would have further subjected me to the very same pattern of abuse that I am currently trying to stop.”

So, it’s over. After intense investigations by various media outlets, excruciating witness interviews, and hours of court time, the Ghomeshi trials are done.

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Feminism February 24, 2016

‘Tik tok’ goes the failed justice system

You may know her for her catchy, nonsensical lyrics and chart busting singles, but singer and rapper Kesha Rose has a lot more to offer to the industry than her musical talents. With an IQ of over 140, the 28-year-old blonde can easily be classified in the ‘near genius’ category. But you probably didn’t know that.

What you do know is that for about three years now, the often misunderstood artist was restricted of personal growth and creative expression due to her ongoing legal battle. The battle began in October 2014, when Kesha filed a lawsuit against her long-time producer Dr. Luke for “mental manipulation, emotional abuse and sexual assault”, and was looking to be freed from her contract with him. Kesha alleges that Dr. Luke abused her to the point where her self-confidence was destroyed, that he maintained control over her and body shamed her, and he referred to her as a “fat f*cking refrigerator.” She alleges that it got to the point where she nearly lost her life.

Google Kesha and a few things become apparent. The choice of pictures associated with these rather condescending articles and tabloid reports will have you comparing the incident to the ugly media frenzy Donald Trump faced after his ban-on-Muslims statement. And after countless unflattering pictures, demeaning headlines, and unnecessary remarks in the comment sections, it seems the media and justice system won in misrepresenting the singer – and women – yet again. Kesha’s motion for the preliminary injunction was denied.

The trial has nonetheless brought on heated debates and sparked conversations, especially on social media under the hashtag #FreeKesha.

So the question arises; what exactly is the solution?

“The solution is for power structures to recognize women’s accusations rather than refusing them in order for corporations to continue and exploit said women to make profits. It has to recognize women as real beings. It’s for men to be held accountable for their crimes against women and acknowledging that the root of all our problems is that we live in an established capitalist, hetero-patriarchal, sexist society where financial strength will always perpetuate rape culture,” believes Konain Edhi, Equity Studies major at the University of Toronto.

While attorneys for Dr. Luke and Sony have argued that Kesha is bound by the contract and must perform her obligations or be held accountable, the record label did tell the court the singer will be allowed to work with another producer.

Yay.

The ongoing support and sympathy the artist has received, including a generous $250K donation from Taylor Swift, is promising, but sadly, these type of events are not a rare occurrence. Time and time again, we are exposed to the injustice and double standards that women are subjected to face because of their gender. Whether its Chris Brown getting away with the most minimal sentence after horrifically beating Rihanna and still going on to have a thriving career in the music industry, or actor Roman Polanski receiving an Oscar to a standing ovation after being accused of raping a 13-year-old girl, what’s prevalent in the entertainment industry is that men always win.

Equally prevalent is the disregard for women’s mental and emotional health in the industry. We saw this during Britney Spears’ and Mariah Carey’s personal struggles back in the early 2000’s, which has since become a spectacle of memes and running jokes in the media. It’s not like the pressures of being international, Grammy Award winning pop stars had anything to with it. But sure, we’ll let One Direction’s Zayn Malik off the hook for venturing away from his boys into his own solo career because ‘he was sad.’ It’s only fair.

Let’s not forget about the absolutely outrageous dilemma that is occurring here at home involving former CBC radio broadcaster, Jian Ghomeshi, and his ongoing trial, whose allegations include a total of seven reported counts of sexual assault, and one count of overcoming resistance by choking. Despite Ghomeshi’s horrific accusations, the trial has focused largely on the actions of the alleged victims and their poor memories. The defence spent days poking holes in their stories — most of which happened over 10 years ago —and discrediting their statements in the court of law and public opinion.

What’s important is to understand it’s irrelevant to question the emails or text messages sent after the fact. It should not invalidate the very real trauma that women — who are essentially survivors of violence — face. People react to violence in different ways. That does not mean it is okay. Sadly, these crimes will deem the violent behaviour of these men as palatable and forgivable once again. As for women? Well, their actions will be labelled as defaming and victimizing.

We evidently have a long way to go before we can see change occurring in our society. For now, we are left to read articles featuring Kesha looking ‘trashy AF’ and listening to comments of how Jian Ghomeshi’s victims ‘need a lesson in common sense.’

What we can do while scrolling through our feed, as we’re exposed to both sides of the stories, is to join the conversation and provoke the change we’re looking for. Because it is only a matter of time before another woman comes forth with her story. Untill then, we must be aware, we must be prepared, and we must engage in tough conversations with our friends and family who may not understand that we do, indeed, live in a society that unjustifiably upholds rape and violence against women.

What are your thoughts on this story? Leave a comment below and tell us!

Politics November 7, 2014

Those who hurt us

When Mayor Ford sexually assaulted me he demonstrated the extent a powerful man and his colleagues will go in order to hide the truth and destroy someone’s credibility. Their ability to influence talk show hosts into using their microphones to twist and distort events with commentary designed specifically to destroy my credibility wasn’t just unethical but it validates the need for a stronger code of conduct in the broadcast industry.

The morning following my assault, one of my friends at Newstalk 1010 informed me that the Fords were trying to get their radio hosts and others in the media to denounce me. They used the same strategy that Jian Ghomeshi tried to use in his Facebook statement – they tried to define me as an unstable woman seeking attention. Ford’s people succeeded in coercing their media friends to question my motives, to attack my integrity and cast me as a woman not to be believed. Not only did this elevate the Mayor, it ensured other victims stayed silent. Everything from my hair, to my looks, and behavior was attacked. And while the average person got the impression that I wasn’t credible, others who knew a little more about the Mayor reached out to me. Some had seen Mayor Ford drunk, there were women who had endured his lewd behavior at parties – yet none of them were willing to speak out, driven to silence in part due to the shaming I was getting from a few unethical media personalities.

This is the problem with public shaming. It silences those who might speak out, who might come forward. And it stops women from speaking out about sexual assault, especially when the perpetrator is in a position of power and influence. There are some who suggest that simply because a victim has turned to social media it makes them fair game for media attacks – it is time broadcasters follow a code of conduct that protects victims of assault from media lynching.

Michael Coren was one of the media personalities whose attack on me was particularly hurtful. It stung most because we had been colleagues for years at the Women’s Post. We met when a mutual friend suggested I hire him to write columns for the magazine, explaining that Coren had children, wasn’t working and needed financial help. We worked together for over a year, and often attended the same events. I edited many of his columns and although we shared different views we developed what I thought was a mutual respect — he knew me well enough to know that I wasn’t a person to make up stories. And yet instead of standing up for me when I came out publicly with Mayor Ford’s assault, he used his pulpit at Sun News Network to attack and degrade me – from my looks, to my hair and my actions, and the entire time pretended that he barely knew me. I’m not sure if the Fords intimidated him, or if he desperately wanted to impress them, but there is something very sad about a man who fails when confronted with a moral decision.

Jian Ghomeshi tried to define his story differently by shaming and blaming his victims. He didn’t have as much help doing this as Mayor Ford received in degrading me, but the truth in both instances eventually came out. The women who have come forward to call out Ghomeshi are very brave, each had to risk to their reputations. I was glad the media commentators who attacked me didn’t attack these women, but I worry that the only reason they didn’t lash out was because Mr. Ghomeshi wasn’t one of their Conservative colleagues.

“Ghomeshi-gate” has caused women across North America to tell their stories and it is through these stories that we as a society can learn and grow and change. Their courage is inspiring, and their stories need to be told.

So far in my life I have endured assaults by three men. One man threw me across a room in a fit of rage. Another thought that punching my face repeatedly might change my negative feelings towards him. I stayed home for a week hiding my swollen face, ashamed and scared to go to the police, or do anything that might cause him to enter my life again. The third happened when Mayor Ford groped me while high, drunk, or probably both.

Like so many victims my first feeling after Mayor Ford assaulted me was guilt. I told myself that I should never have posed beside Mayor Ford after his comments about wanting to have “fun” in Florida with me. When he lewdly called me a “dirty, dirty, girl” I should have realized he was in some drug-induced machismo high and left. But instead I stood there beside him smiling for the camera. I wished I had simply kneed him in the groin and been done with it, and like most assault victims, I blamed myself for not reacting. Today I understand that it was not my fault. Mayor Ford was intoxicated and his choice to grope me was a power play on someone in the crowd that he knew.

My guilt was followed by worry over how my actions might impact my family. With so many cameras flashing around Mayor Ford, someone may have captured a picture showing me stupidly smiling with his hand on my butt. Why did I smile? What if people thought I’d enjoyed it? The humiliation this could have caused my husband was horrifying. I love him more than anything in the world, he is an amazing man and father, gentle and quiet, and he prefers to stay far from the spotlight. Shaming him would have devastated me and there was no way I could risk the chance of some picture or video hitting the media that might have made it look like I was a willing participant. Like other victims of assault, I mistakenly worried about how the assault might hurt everyone else around me, instead of focusing on how it hurt me. In hindsight I should have gone to the police and let them deal with it.

Every person who has suffered abuse goes through the same turmoil of guilt, self-blame and confusion over how to handle the issue.

In the year that followed the groping most of the accusations I had made about Mayor Ford came to light, from his drug use, to his vulgar attitude toward women, as well as the lies his staff told to hide the truth about his condition that evening. To top it off, radio host Ryan Doyle had the decency to apologize for the things he had said about me.

A lot of time has passed, situations have changed significantly for all of us, and today, as I sit typing, Rob Ford struggles with cancer. Despite the horrible way he treated me, I find myself praying that he’ll beat his cancer. I feel compassion and it is this compassion, this ability to forgive, to accept and to move forward that makes us stronger.

When it comes to sexual assault our society must change the way we handle it. The media can lead in this area or they can refuse to change. Broadcasters like Newstalk 1010, Sun News Network, and others should follow a code of conduct that puts victim protection first. They must stop their commentators and hosts from lynching, blaming or making disparaging comments about victims of assault. Broadcasters must begin to see that they have a duty to protect victims, not judge them or publicly shame them – and without a code of conduct that broadcasters actually honor, victims of assault will forever be at risk of public shaming and choose silence over exposure.