Female stars speak out about allegations against Ghomeshi

Katie Boland, left, and Maria Del Mar co-starred in 'Original Sin.'

TORONTO — A number of female celebrities are speaking out about allegations by other women of sexual abuse by former CBC Radio host Jian Ghomeshi.
Canadian actress Polly Shannon, best known for roles on Sue Thomas: F.B. Eye and for portraying Margaret Trudeau in the 2002 TV movie Trudeau, said she is “not surprised” by the growing number of claims.

“We went on a date once and some of what these women mention was the same for [me],” Shannon wrote in a thread on the Facebook page of actress Maria Del Mar.
“He never hurt me but I was so repulsed by him and his arrogance I never went to his home.”
Shannon, 41, said Ghomeshi should be grateful it was a short date. “Had he punched me in the head I would likely have stabbed him in the throat,” she wrote.
Del Mar, who played a detective in the TV series Blue Murder, used her Facebook page to accuse Ghomeshi of being “a sexual predator” and “narcissist.”
She wrote: ”That is just my opinion. If all of this (and I believe it will) turns out to be true, he should be tried in court.”
Ghomeshi has denied the allegations and none of the women have filed criminal complaints against him with police.
On Monday, singer Lights, who is managed by Ghomeshi, posted a letter of support on her Facebook page.


“Jian is not an example of someone who is abusive or misogynistic, in fact, he has always preached to the empowerment and limitless strength of women to me.”
Lights later deleted the message and has made no further comment on social media.
In an interview that aired Wednesday on CBC Radio, actress Lucy DeCoutere alleged the former Q host “took me by the throat, pressed me against the wall and choked me.”
The Toronto Star has published similar allegations from at least eight women.
On Thursday, Canadian musician Basia Bulat tweeted: “Believe women.”
Actress Katie Boland, who’s had roles in Reign and Lost Girl, has tweeted extensively since the Ghomeshi scandal exploded.
Late Wednesday, she tweeted “#ibelieveher.”
Boland, 26, took to her Facebook page to share links to articles about sexual violence and to support the women who have spoken out.
“This has been a disheartening and educational week,” she wrote.
Both Boland and Bulat are listed as clients of rock-it promotions, the Toronto PR firm that has long represented Ghomeshi.
Boland did not respond to a request for comment from Global News.
READ MORE: Ghomeshi says he’ll ‘meet allegations directly’
At around 2 p.m. Thursday, Global News contacted rock-it owner Debra Goldblatt-Sadowski to ask if she was concerned about losing business due to her representation of Ghomeshi.
She did not respond but, nearly three hours later, tweeted: “Going forward, rock-it promotions will no longer be representing Jian Ghomeshi. We won’t be responding to or receiving media requests.”
On Oct. 28, Goldblatt-Sadowski commented on Facebook: “It’s hard when you love the person who is being attacked … bottom line – it’s a matter for the court of justice, not the public courts. I’ve lost a little faith in humanity this week.”
On its website, rock-it also lists clients like Arlene Dickinson, Helene Joy, Jane Seymour, Kristin Booth and Meghan Heffern.
Actress Emily Hamphire (My Awkward Sexual Adventure), also listed as a rock-it client, has not commented about the scandal on social media but tweeted a link to Ghomeshi’s Oct. 26 statement on Facebook.