Newsletter: A closer look at Friday's notable stories
Film producer Harvey Weinstein, right, with his lawyer Benjamin Brafman inside Manhattan Criminal Court during his arraignment in New York City on Friday. (Steven Hirsch/Reuters)
In the wake of Weinstein
The #MeToo movement exploded over Harvey Weinstein, but it won't end with him — even as the former Hollywood mogul faces criminal charges for alleged assaults of two women.
Yesterday, it was another boldface name, actor Morgan Freeman, who faced accusations of harassment and inappropriate behaviour from eight female colleagues. (The 80-year-old Oscar winner quickly issued a blanket apology to "anyone who felt uncomfortable or disrespected," although that wasn't enough to save his marketing deals with Visa and Vancouver Transit.)
Film producer Harvey Weinstein leaves the 1st Precinct in Manhattan, NY, on Friday after turning himself in to police to face charges. (Mike Segar/Reuters)
And the list of prominent men now facing consequences for their past behaviour towards women continues to grow.
Nate Boulton, an Iowa state senator and a would-be Democratic Party nominee for governor, suspended his campaign yesterday amid allegations from three female lawyers — two of them his ex-law school classmates — of groping and frottage.
Frottage - the practice of touching or rubbing against the clothed body of another person in a crowd as a means of obtaining sexual gratification.
Celebrity chef Mario Batali has been dropped by his own restaurant group following the news that he is now under police investigation for allegations of sexual assault and inappropriate behaviour dating back over two decades.
Actor Morgan Freeman attends the 2018 PEN Literary Gala in New York on Tuesday. He is facing allegations of sexual misconduct. (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Earlier in the week, Kunihiko Takahashi, mayor of the Tokyo suburb of Komae, announced his intention to resign following accusations of touching and sexual harassment brought forward by four municipal employees.
Rev. Paige Patterson, a longtime U.S. evangelical leader, was removed from his position as president emeritus of the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Texas, after a former divinity student told the Washington Post that he counselled her to "forgive" a classmate whom she alleges raped her and to not report the assault to the police.
In Israel, some worshippers are walking out of synagogues that play the music of the late Shlomo Carlebach, who gained international fame as the "singing rabbi" in the 1960s, and more recently has been identified as a serial sexual offender.
Iowa Democratic gubernatorial candidate Sen. Nate Boulton has been accused of touching women inappropriately. (Charlie Neibergall/Associated Press)
Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Junot Diaz this week found himself disinvited from a scheduled summer talk at a Wyoming library, in the wake of misconduct allegations that surfaced at an Australian writers' festival.
And 10 former McDonald's employees in nine U.S. cities have filed sexual harassment complaints against supervisors at the fast food chain. They say they were propositioned, touched, and subjected to lewd comments and even indecent exposure on a regular basis while the company did nothing.
Laws are changing too
The French government has passed legislation that will give rape victims under the age of 18 a full 30 years to make a complaint — a decade more than before. It also enacted on-the-spot fines for men who harass women in the streets with whistles and catcalls.
American chef Mario Batali holds a tray of pasta ahead of a state dinner at the White House in October 2016. He has been dropped by his restaurant group following news that he is under police investigation for allegations of sexual assault and inappropriate behaviour. (Carolyn Kaster/Associated Press)
Yesterday, the U.S. Senate adopted a bill that will hold lawmakers personally liable for monetary settlements with staffers and congressional employees who have been sexually harassed. The bill also does away with requirements that said anyone bringing forward a complaint had to undergo counselling and participate in an arbitration process.
Yet there are those who think that some of the men who have been accused of inappropriate behaviour by women deserve a chance to redeem themselves.
The cast of Arrested Development gave a controversial interview to the New York Times this week. Three of the male members defended co-star Jeffrey Tambor — who has been accused of onset tirades and inappropriate remarks — even as Jessica Walter, who plays the matriarch of the Bluth clan, teared up at the memory of a tongue-lashing delivered by her TV husband.
And comedian Sarah Silverman told GQ magazine she thinks the idea that men who have admitted past transgressions — like her friend Louis C.K. and former senator Al Franken — should be "excommunicated forever" is wrong-headed.
No-one has 'excommunicated' anyone 'forever'! But #MeToo is still only months old and those exposed for rather sickening, pathetic character flaws need time to reflect and repent. They need 'years' of time, not months. You are about 5 years too soon with this argument, Sarah.
Sarah Silverman says she thinks the idea that men who have admitted past transgressions should be 'excommunicated forever' is wrong-headed. (Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images for Hulu)
"The important thing is that they are forever changed," she said. "And if that's the case, I don't see any reason why they can't continue being artists. ... There are people that come and say, 'I'm guilty of these things, and I'm wrong, and I want to be changed from this.'"
An opinion that appears to put the outspoken Silverman in the minority.
One story not included in Jonathon Gatehouse's otherwise excellent article is the fact that a class-action law suit has been filed against Gilbert Rozon.
A Quebec judge has authorized a class-action lawsuit against former Just For Laughs head Gilbert Rozon for the alleged harassment and sexual assault of several women.
The women sought permission last fall to file the suit against the co-founder of the popular Montreal comedy festival, seeking $10-million in punitive damages as well as additional compensation.
They created a group called “Les Courageuses” (“The Courageous Ones”) and alleged Mr. Rozon abused at least 20 women between 1982 and 2016.
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