Jian Ghomeshi

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Sunday Link-Off: Important Topics of Discussion

rachel-mortenson-fredericks14-11I think that I’ve mentioned it before but there are three linkdumps a year that are exceptionally difficult to do: The one following July 4th, the one of the two following Christmas because you can only run so many year-in-review links and this one following US Thanksgiving. We do have some links for you but not as many as usual.

However, to make up for the relative lack of links, here’s the return of an old favourite. It’s American model Rachel Mortenson.

With the recent protests in Ferguson and support protests in Toronto, we shouldn’t be settling for “we’re not as bad as them” as a positive for Canadian society. (Toronto Life)

It’s not just 18-year-olds or Ferguson that has to deal with police racism. A 12-year-old in Cleveland was shot for having an airsoft gun and the police are trying to justify it. (Gawker)

And I’m not the only person who thinks there a shift in the discourse about sexual assault. It looks like the Ghomeshi story has started making investigating sexual assaults a big deal. (MacLean’s)

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Wednesday Link-Off: The Week That Is

kate-beckinsale-ama14-01I’m not sure that I’ve ever seen a single week in which so many major stories have broken or had developments. Between the grand jury and subsequent protests/riots in Ferguson, Jian Ghomeshi, Bill Cosby and the start of year-end lists, there is no shortage of interesting reads this week. It was a challenge to get it down to a manageable list for today’s links.

So let’s not waste any more time. Let’s start with Kate Beckinsale.

The Grand Jury hearing the case of Officer Darren Wilson, the man who shot Michael Brown in Ferguson, declined to indict the police officer. It’s hard to believe considering the inconsistencies in Wilson’s story. (Vox)

And Grand Juries not approving indictments, the Grand Jury is often termed a prosecutor’s playground. It’s exceedingly rare for a Grand Jury not to indict but Robert McCulloch managed to pull that off in the biggest case of his career. (FiveThirtyEight)

Rape culture and the discourse around sexual assault is something that society is coming along on but is a far way from getting right. There is still a lot of troubling stigma over sexual assault. (Rolling Stone)

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Sunday Link-Off: The Only Story in Town

emma-watson-elleuk14-01Are there any news stories in Canada this week? Last week? Just the one? I love the Jian Ghomeshi conversation as much as anyone but it might be about time that we move on to talk about important things like bills going through Parliament or something that’s actually news.

Anyway, it’s time for the links. Let’s change things up and start with Emma Watson.

So apparently I’m wrong about an improvement in the discourse around sexual violence in Canada because of the Ghomeshi scandal. This op-ed says that I’m an idiot for thinking that people might talk about sexual violence differently now. And now discourse has been set back. (The Globe and Mail)

Though Post columnist Christie Blatchford thinks we’re not quite there yet as there’s a double standard about who can talk about what. (National Post)

The head of CBC’s English language services breaks her silence about Ghomeshi. (Metro)

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Wednesday Link-Off: Did You Know?

amy-adams-artfilm14-002I could be wrong but the Jian Ghomeshi story could end up being one of the most important ones in a long while in Canada.  A number of people I know went from doubting Ghomeshi’s accusers for a variety of reasons to eventually coming around to the accuser’s side. It looks like the discussion around the so-called “rape culture” is changing and we aren’t so dismissive of women who accuse men of abusing them. Hopefully this continues the next time we see this story.

Anyway, it’s time for the links. Here’s Amy Adams.

Donovan, the Toronto Star’s superstar investigative reporter, talks about his dinner with Jian Ghomeshi during the investigation. (Toronto Star)

The other man on that Ghomeshi report, Jesse Brown, talks to a former Q staffer about Ghomeshi and what he saw. (Canadaland)

Toronto Star commentator Jia Junaid was originally a skeptic of Jian Ghomeshi’s accusers but not unlike many Canadians, she’s changed her tune. (Toronto Star)

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Sunday Link-Off: Going, Going, Jian

rashida-jones-kate-hudson-olivia-wilde-courageawards14-01One week later and the Jian Ghomeshi scandal hasn’t really died down. In fast, if you’re Jian, it’s getting worse because your statement said it was one jilted ex-girlfriend but it’s now accusations from 10 different women. Maybe the CBC made the right call on this one. Considering how badly they botched the NHL deal, they were due to get something right.

Anyway, it’s time for the Sunday set of links. For something a little special, here are Rashida Jones, Kate Hudson and Olivia Wilde.

In the last few days, four more women have come forward with allegations about sexual violence and/or harassment by Jian Ghomeshi. One of them, an actress on Trailer Park Boys, has put her name to the accusation. (Toronto Star)

CBC Radio had an interview with a women about Ghomeshi on their flagship evening show, As It Happens. She detailed her time with Ghomeshi and, as we’ve come to expect, it’s not pretty. (The Globe and Mail)

Lawyer Reva Seth took to the internet to tell her story of Jian Ghomeshi. (Huffington Post)

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Wednesday Link-Off: The Old Guard and New

genevieve-morton-sisouthafrica14-04Well, this was certainly an interesting week to live in Ontario. First, the CBC Radio’s top daytime host is fired after they found out about a number of allegations involving sexual harassment and non-consensual sexual violence which resulted in him filing a lawsuit. There were municipal elections across the province that saw Rob Ford become a Toronto city councillor and Doug just miss becoming mayor. And I’m sure there’s loads more that happened that I’m not covering in today’s links.

But before we get to today’s links, here’s Genevieve Morton.

Unless you’ve been under a rock this week, CBC Radio host Jian Ghomeshi was fired after a number of allegations of non-consensual sexual violence and sexual harassment. (Toronto Star)

One expert analysed the Star’s story and Ghomeshi’s statement and looked at the real issues and inconsistencies in the stories. (Sex Geek)

Many people don’t believe the accusations against Ghomeshi because the accusers aren’t going to police and have chosen to remain anonymous. However, they’re taking this course of action because of a fear of harassment and threats. (New York Times)

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