Patrick Brown’s resignation a cue to ‘shine a light’ on unwanted sexual advances, premier says
Kathleen Wynne praises the two women who came forward. Brown has denied the allegations.

Thestar.com
Jan. 25, 2018
Rob Ferguson

The resignation of Patrick Brown over allegations of unwanted sexual advances is a cue for Ontarians to “shine a light on behaviours that are unacceptable,” says Premier Kathleen Wynne.

“This is a shared responsibility,” she told a packed news conference in her office Thursday morning, for the most part leaving talk of politics aside with the June 7 election quickly approaching.

“We are all in this together and we are all in it as employers, we’re in it as family members, we’re in it as workers in all sorts of environments.”

Wynne praised two women who came forward in interviews with CTV News on Wednesday night for their courage.

She urged anyone who is considering whether to go public with accusations about bosses, colleagues or acquaintances “to make sure they have trusted people to speak to because it is a hard thing to do when you have had an experience that has broken a trust.”

Brown has denied the allegations from the two young women, who say they were teenagers and drunk at the time of the incidents when he was the federal MP for Barrie before entering provincial politics.

One of the women said Brown, a non-drinker, “pulled down his pants and I don’t know if he said ‘suck my dick’ or ‘put this in my mouth’ but something along those lines.”

“These allegations are false. Every one of them,” Brown said Wednesday night, hours before he resigned as party leader.

Wynne, whose government launched the “It’s Never OK” advertising campaign to fight sexual misconduct with a series of trail-blazing ads, said it’s important to realize how devastating such experiences can be.

“I believe victims when they come forward,” she added in an 18-minute news conference.

“It is really, really important that we understand how deeply troubling this is to human beings, to people,” the premier said in answering a host of questions from reporters.

“There will be lots of talk about the politics. But this is about creating safety. How can you expect young people, young girls, young boys growing up to feel safe if we don’t as the adults create those spaces.”

Wynne acknowledged she has had problems with MPPs in her own caucus over inappropriate sexual behaviour, with one still not identified and said stronger rules have been put in place.

“At the heart of those procedures is a respect for the privacy of the victims who come forward,” said the premier. Her former Niagara MPP Kim Craitor was forced to resign in 2013 over sexual harassment allegations. The riding was subsequently won by New Democrat Wayne Gates.

Wynne declined further comment on the Brown situation but said “there should be due process and there is a legal process that has to be part of this.”

Going forward, Wynne said changing the culture around unwanted advances “goes way beyond government policy way beyond government action” to individuals in their everyday lives.

“We have our own little flashlights.”