Sheila Copps says she was raped, and sexually assaulted

[Retired_Can_Soldier]

I'm no fan of Liberals, I simply think the party itself is corrupt to the core. But! And I could be being a tad naive here, but I believe her. Knowing women that have lived through it, I can't imagine a women pretending to have had it happen to her for political gain or attention.

It would make that person the most vile of scum.

I would like to believe her, but without corroboration it is very hard to believe. I know some just want to accept it and feel to question such an allegation is partisan and cruel and mean, but it's a very serious allegation and making a claim of this sort should not be accepted without a few facts. Sheila has given nothing, but anecdotal here say.

Sorry Gerryh, hate to piss you off, but without more. Even a police report I am skeptical.

 

[Locutus]

What Sheila Copps wrote:

OTTAWA—Sex and politics can be a toxic mix. I hesitate to wade into the harassment allegations emanating from Parliament Hill because last week I committed a grievous personal lapse in judgment.

Upon reading Jian Ghomeshi’s explanation of his firing from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, I took to the Twitterverse in his defence.

Without taking the time to hear the other side of the story, I supported his claim that his sexual encounters were consensual and outside the workplace.

I should never have weighed on an issue as sensitive as that without taking the time to hear the other side of the story.

Obviously, the CBC believed it had sufficient evidence to terminate the contract of an iconic superstar.

Multiple complainants subsequently came forward to further reinforce allegations of the non-consensual nature of Ghomeshi’s actions.

That matter has now been referred to police, which is an appropriate arena for allegations of this nature.

Unfortunately, no Canadian police force can investigate a complaint on Parliament Hill.

When media pundit Ian Capstick came forward last week relating his experience as a young employee on the Hill, he was reflecting the experience of hundreds who have gone before him.

Men and women, Parliamentarians and assistants have all felt the sting of sexual harassment. Like many workplaces, the Hill is also a place where consensual sexual dalliances occur.

Unlike most workplaces, when harassment or assault does occur on Parliament Hill, aggrieved parties do not have the same access to due process as they would anywhere else.

At more than one point, the Speaker has been the subject of a complaint. When one complainant attempted to have the issue removed to a jurisdiction outside Parliament Hill, the law stymied her.

The Hill workplace is not subject to provincial labour laws, which offer protection in every other place of employment in Ontario.

The suspension of two Liberal MPs, and the allegation referrals to the Speaker will no doubt shine a light on the current lack of due process.

The Senate has already established a complaints’ system following more than one employee allegation.

But what happens when allegations of harassment do not involve employees but rather other MPs?

I was sexually assaulted by another Member of the Provincial Parliament within a year of my arrival at Queen’s Park at the age of 28.

We were both on a Parliamentary tour studying violence against women. The incident occurred when we exited a hotel elevator after enjoying a group dinner following a day-long session in northern Ontario.

I pushed back on my assailant, kicking him where it hurts, when he tried to force me up against a wall and kiss me.

After I rebuffed his misplaced advance, he never went near me again and we continued our northern tour without further incident. I never reported him, chalking the incident up to personal misjudgment.

The Capstick revelations on CBCNN’s Power & Politics were not unexpected to anyone who has experienced the inner workings of the Hill.

The potential for harassment of young gay and lesbian employees was well known. Some alleged offenders were long-serving MPs and even officers of Parliament.

In the days when the only supportable public orientation was heterosexual, homosexual MPs often lived in the closet. Some still do, even those sitting in Cabinet.

Their right to privacy is well-guarded by all but with the secrecy comes the potential for sexual messages to be misread, misunderstood and downright misbegotten.

At the risk of being Twitter-bombed again, I think it is important to recognize the fine line between a toxic workplace and misread sexual signals between adults who are not employees.

In my lifetime, I have not only been sexually assaulted by another member.

Someone I knew has also raped me.

I expect my experience is not that different from many? More than 30 years ago (she'll be 62 in 2 weeks) , I went to the police. I was informed that a conviction was impossible. Police merely paid a visit to the culprit warning him to keep his distance.

On Parliament Hill, there are sexual dalliances, affairs, and outright assaults that occur.

The difference is that victims in that sanctified workplace do not have the right to go beyond the Hill for due process.

House Speaker Andrew Scheer has plenty of precedents for investigating allegations, including complaints levelled at more than one former Speaker.

But as long as the investigation occurs solely within the Parliamentary Precinct, neither the accuser nor the accused will have the same right to due process afforded Jian Ghomeshi.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era Cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister.

news@hilltimes.com


‘I was sexually assaulted when I was an MPP, and I’ve been raped’: Copps | hilltimes.com

 

[CDNBear]

I would like to believe her, but without corroboration it is very hard to believe. I know some just want to accept it and feel to question such an allegation is partisan and cruel and mean, but it's a very serious allegation and making a claim of this sort should not be accepted without a few facts. Sheila has given nothing, but anecdotal here say.

Sorry Gerryh, hate to piss you off, but without more. Even a police report I am skeptical.

Hey, I'm not casting aspersions on your opinion, dude. You make a valid point and I certainly don't think it's partisan, in any way.

Just stating where I stand and why. Apparently I think better of Sheila Copps than I thought, lol. Trust me, I'm actually shocked.

 

[SLM]

I believe this happened to her. While I don't have, never have had, the highest opinion of her in the past, I don't think she's lying. My opinion of her is that she's always been all about the attention, and even at that I don't believe she's making it up. Unless I'm mistaken I think she's mentioned at least one of the incidents in her memoirs already, so this is not a new revelation. What I am not completely convinced of, and I may be wrong, but I'm not convinced she's speaking up now for altruistic reasons.

Now I can see a reason for a woman to come forward with a revelation like this, sometimes it can be helpful to someone who's perhaps alone and too afraid to tell anyone that they've been raped, to be exposed to someone saying it happened to them. It can have the effect of making one feel a little less alone, and that can be a powerful thing.

And for what it's worth, I don't think I'd be naming names after 30 years either. There is still value in coming forward even without doing that.

 

[JLM]

You a$$holes.

Uh??

I'm just speculating here, but Sheila Copps rapist is starting to remind me of Jean Chretien's homeless man. If she reported this there would be a paper trail. If it in fact happened. Only Sheila knows for sure I guess and she's kept that secret. Seems uncharacteristic of a woman who has had such tenacity. I am skeptical. Unsubstantiated allegations are always going to be suspect.

She's a politician, therefore anything she says about any subject is suspect.

 

[Sal]

I believe her and it doesn't matter why she is bringing it up. She has that right. She is a bright, articulate, intelligent woman. Rape has nothing to do with political parties. It either happened or it didn't.

From what she has said above, they need to clean that hill up. It sounds like a cesspool. How would your average person have any idea of that working environment being unsafe, we wouldn't. As such we would assume that they are squeaky clean up there from that perspective maybe only from that perspective.

It would seem politicians are scum from the inside out when they go bad there is no line they won't cross and as in all other areas, they are completely protected. She is talking about a lot of years ago. I know what it was like back then in the office work place and lots of advances got made and lots of advantages were taken. Stuff happened back then on a daily basis that would land people in jail today. Young women were prime targets and you either stood up or shut up. In those days the ideal was to have a mentor who thought of you as his daughter otherwise you were on your own. And that's just the way it was.

She has gone public she has chosen to be transparent now to the degree that the law will allow. How we tend to view it is our choice just remember the culture and the day and what power will allow.

I also believe saying one is raped is much akin to saying you've had or have cancer. Unless someone is unbalanced, it won't happen. Does it happen, yeah, when someone is unbalanced.