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© 2024 JANINE RAMLOCHAN. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
This article was posted to Medium (8.7.20) to draw attention to the issue Sussman and his board refused to take seriously. It summarizes the harassment in the two years leading up to this date, when I was still a student at the Toronto Metropolitan University (then Ryerson).
“For three years now, I've been harassed by Canadian Television & Film executives even though I've never been part of that industry.
This all came about through a [contract lecturer, dean and member of the program's advisorY board] at a university where I have been enrolled.".
For three years, I have been harassed by Canadian television and film industry execs in virtual contexts, even though I’ve never been part of that industry. This all came about through contract instructors at a university in Toronto where I have been enrolled in a BFA program. The individuals are well-known in Canada for their mainstream successes and failures, these interactions span a now defunct organization and a newly emerging one.
I’m not an employee nor do I have a venture funded by them, although these have both been under discussion in unofficial channels. I have tried to walk away numerous times due to their conduct, dismissal of these issues and a mismatch with their white male culture. I am aware the inappropriate conduct has been and continues to be discussed, debated and dismissed at the board level, but the offending party was a cofounder and I am told board members are merely advisory and somehow unaccountable.
I have been hit on then told by others I should apologize after I rebuffed their advance. I have been called a cunt and sent articles analyzing mammalian and human reproductive organs or weird mating habits, in retaliatory bids to make me uncomfortable. To prepare for financial discussions with them, a book outlining the negotiation tactics of high-end prostitutes was recommended to me. When I highlight how clearly inappropriate this is, I am sent articles on how to develop a sense of humour, how bitchy-looking women are better communicators, and sent material by relationship counsellors on how women need to make men feel for men to fall in love, both personally and in business. I have been threatened with reduced compensation and, at one point, was sent an article discussing tactics used by an Israeli spy firm retained by Harvey Weinstein to investigate and profile his victims.
“I am as unclear about what I can do about this situation today
as I was six months or a year ago, but seeing how all this came about through a university instructor, i have to wonder how many
other students are enduring the same situation.".
There are well-worn cycles. When these issues are elevated to the board chair it initially appears to be seriously addressed. I am placated, reassured things will change, yet nothing changes and the offending cofounder remains my point of contact despite my insistence to the contrary. Each time the cycle restarts, I’m told by the harasser to tread cautiously (or else), when I become erratic I’m told to hold it together, when I put anything forward I am mocked, sent racist messages or belittled as too people pleasing. When I try to walk away, I’m faced with anger and animosity to finish a deal that never progresses and still exists almost solely in hot air.
I have a chronic mental health condition which all of this exacerbates. My therapist helped me draft a message, outlining how the manner in which they’ve chosen to communicate with me exacerbates my symptoms. It is taken seriously only momentarily. Later, when I bring it to their attention how the preferred mode of communication emulates cyberstalking, I’m completely dismissed.
Demands had catapulted beyond overbearing four months ago when I began to delete all channels we communicate on, later shutting down my websites, profiles, blocking their usual addresses, and downloading a VPN, but this only accelerated the pace of their cyberstalking. Five weeks ago I threatened to file a police report and have subsequently threatened violence. Cyberstalking leaves no paper trail though and I am not a white male entertainment lawyer in a country where judges don’t listen to women who are visible minorities. Their board does nothing. I receive a barrage of messages about how I’m attention-seeking, ruining my opportunity for happiness, how I need to learn to resolve complex social problems, and how I’ll need to give them post-pandemic financials, for the business plans I refused to further discuss with them months ago, citing distrust issues. This week, I was again sent messages about how women need to make men feel to be successful in business.
I am as unclear about what I can do about this situation today as I was six months or a year ago, but seeing how this all came about through a university instructor, I have to wonder how many other students are enduring a similar situation. I may not have official correspondence, but I have the dates and messages I’ve sent attempting to raise the issue, which illustrate two boards have been complicit in all of the above.
A stalled harassment settlement has been in negotiation, however, I need assistance compiling evidence and devising a legal case. I am willing to offer a percentage of the settlement amount for a human rights lawyer, investigative journalist and tech team willing to invest the time to research the issue upfront. Additional bonusing is on offer if systemic change is garnered (throughout the university system, the media industry value chains, government organizations and funding bodies).
The settlement amount is, in my view, fairly substantial and has grown steadily in discussion each year the harassment has not ceased. As Sussman has always been a Canadian government-financed TV media industry exec (and subsequent billionaire), I see this case offering a bottomless pit of legal fees and cutting-edge legal case studies – in areas of Canadian (state-sponsored) media, spyware, privacy, harassment and cyberstalking, intertwined with racial and gender discrimination.
Here is how I view approaching this:
1. A legal assessment of Sussman’s conduct as a prominent Canadian media industry executive, board chair of a Canadian public holding company (recently defunct), and an advisor for The Creative School programs and faculty at the Toronto Metropolitan University.
2. A legal assessment of Sussman’s current and former board, their conduct vs. obligations on this issue, history of financial (and other) scandals and failed companies. This holds relevance due to how heavily government subsidized Canadian media industries are (across every level of the media industry value chain). It may also be worthwhile to dig into individual board member’s personal financial dealings, to add more granularity to their profiles and culture.
3. An assessment of personal liability each board member should incur (across Sussman’s companies) and anybroader legal repercussions/ penalties for perpetuating misconduct for such a duration, including the possibility ofcriminal charges.
4. A legal assessment of Charles Falzon’s role (Dean, The Creative School), his conduct vs. ethical obligations to theToronto Metropolitan University students amid harassment concerns, his dismissal of the issues, and how thisinfluences the broader community as a feeder institution to multiple media verticals, and its ecosystem of creativestartups.
5. An assessment of Steve Levitan’s role (contract lecturer, The Creative School) relative to unethical conduct,exploiting student-professor trust for personal profit, and being the institutional conduit between the TorontoMetropolitan University and illegal Canadian television industry practices – abusive, exploitative behaviour,intellectual property theft, posing as an unauthorized broker of work not for sale (all things Sussman, his boardand staff have perpetuated).
6. An investigation into the financial transactional history between Sussman (including his companies and their affiliates), and Charles Falzon, Steve Levitan and Ian Mirlin over the last six years, to determine where priorities align and allegiances prevail.
7. A cultural assessment of Sussman’s organizations, individual staff and board members. There is evidence to suggest the group is predominantly Jewish, a significant proportion are apartheid-era raised white South Africans, with staff derived from local communities in Canada analogous to these, who are more inclined to adopt apartheid-type views, Asian-hate behaviours and control tactics (ie. rural Nova Scotia and Alberta, relatively low income white suburbs like Oshawa, etc), which historically aligns with the television industry’s point-system, and in-part explains the racist, misogynistic, predatory nature and the maliciousness of their conduct. It would also explain why someone with my cultural and professional background and profile would want nothing to do with these people or the industry in this country.
8. A professional correlation between the harassment logs and existing cyberstalking profiles, to construct an accurate picture of: a) Sussman’s sons (Scott Oliver Sussman, Jack Elliot Sussman) as criminal harassers in isolation of b) the organization’s culture and c) the leadership (Steven Silver) and other members instigating the harassment and death threats -- to ensure a clear picture for a legal case against all three groups. In my view cyberstalking is foundational to their daily operations, and misconduct in a range of forms is the accepted norm, actively perpetuated by all levels of its leadership (and presumably their industry culture).
9. Investigative research into the technology component, how they control my computers, devices and printer (ie.illegal installation of spyware, IP address targeting, apple device vulnerabilities exploited by surveillance tech?)and how does one stop or prevent this? As I have never been an employee of Sussman’s nor received any benefit, financial or otherwise from them, the use of surveillance tech on my computers has always been an unconsented, illegal invasion of privacy, and uncontrolled, expansive harassment in the hands of Sussman’s staff and family.
10. Investigative research into their real estate holdings and/or rentals in my building complex, their occupants and/oruses. There are at least 6-9 condo units Sussman’s family and team occupy that face my unit from differentdirections, enabling visual surveillance. I would like to know when they were acquired and occupied, alongside acomparative analysis of demographic profiles of theirs and the majority of the residents here. I expect a significantethnic and income divergence exists in these profiles, begging the question why would Sussman specificallychoose this building and those units?
11. An assessment of whether a court application for a peace bond is an adequate mechanism (amongst others) to legally limit Sussman’s access to my computers, devices and printers, to legally prevent the ongoing harassment, and to potentially legally limit Sussman’s family and staff’s access to the building complex (given the duration of the issue, damage to my electronics equipment, and a demonstrated ability to breach building security and access my floor). It is questionable whether their use of those units is appropriate for a residential building complex, and public scrutiny of their activities and removal of the occupants are more than warranted.
12. An analysis of appropriate and effective mechanisms for addressing these issues in multinational private and public companies in regulated industries, and their absence within the Canadian media industry value chain. Sussman, his board and community affiliates in this case reveal the layered corruption Canadian government funding enables -- where mechanisms like NDA’s shield them from accountability in absence of any real mechanisms for redress (a media landscape looking to government funding bodies as their true north, not markets, conspires to unhealthy corporate practices in this country). This carries through to educational institutions who funnel talent to these companies and are practiced at deflecting issues not aligned with their cultural interests.
13. A mapping of current and former employees (where they came from and have gone), to demonstrate how far reaching these issues are, for industry illustrative purposes and as a basis for compiling evidence for criminal charges against several of Sussman’s employees. Given the change in board and staff due to Sussman’s failed companies amid the ongoing harassment, a mapping of individuals’ movements will likely illustrate this is both a cultural and industry issue, not a question of a few bad apples.
Harassers
Peter A. Sussman / See also: X, Forresters Hall, Mad Rabbit - (former CEO of Alliance Atlantis, Board Chair and co-founder of Kew Media, program advisor of The Creative School, Toronto Metropolitan University, in-class guest)
Steven Silver (former CEO of now defunct Kew Media, in-class guest)
Scott Oliver Sussman (Sussman’s son)
Jack Elliot Sussman (Sussman’s son)
Several current and former unidentified staff (5-8) of Sussman's, many carried over from Kew Media
Accountable Intermediaries
Charles Falzon / See also: X - (Dean of The Creative School, Toronto Metropolitan University)
Steven S. Levitan / See also: Protocol Entertainment (contract lecturer The Creative School, Toronto Metropolitan University)
Ian Mirlin (co-founder of Harrod & Mirlin, now FCB Toronto)
Sussman's Board (from now defunct Kew Media)
Peter A. Sussman / See also: X, Forresters Hall, Mad Rabbit
Steven Silver
Julie Bristow / X
Sara Curran / See also: X, Foresters Hall
Madeleine Cohen
Patrice E. Merrin
Maurice Kagan
Nancy Reiss Tellem
David Fleck
Stephen N. Pincus
Wayne Purboo
Mark L. Segal
John Schmidt
Peter A. Sussman is known for his involvement in CSI and Schitt's Creek. He has companies across many Anglo countries each with staff who can repurposed for harassment.
Current board members, staff and network are unknown, however common Canadian media industry practice in failed companies is to rebrand and start anew with the same people, so there is assumed crossover at the board and staff levels.All the above share some complicity in the harassment since 2018, including several unidentified staff. My understanding is the harassment has been an ongoing discussion amongst the board members without steps taken to resolve or address the issue over the course of several years.
"CYOA Rhythms" was exhibited as part of the IGNITE exhibition series. Commissioned by the City of Mississauga (a Toronto-satellite city) for a group exhibit for the Pan Am & ParaPan Am Games, the work was installed at Mississauga's Celebration Square on Aug 3 & 10 from 8am - 8pm. Hosted by the Art Gallery of Mississauga, an artist talk on 'ideas of cultural citizenship' related to the work, was held Jul 27 @ 1pm via Twitter chat using hashtag #sharethelovesauga.
"CYOA Rhythms" was exhibited at the Medulla Art Gallery, Port of Spain as part of the New Media Program within the 2014 Trinidad & Tobago Film Festival.
"CYOA Rhythms" video installation was exhibited as part of The Carnival Project at the Littlefield Eco-Club, (in Gowanus) Brooklyn New York, hosted by Batala NYC on May 4, 2014.
My essay, "Taking Flight: Perspectives from the Depths of an Ideas Factory" was included in the Sarai 09: Projections reader. The reader series was developed by Sarai, the media arm of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), New Delhi.
• In 2018/19, film and tv production spending in Canada (incl. foreign spending in the sector) was valued at $9.4billion – well above the future forecasted revenue of Bombardier in 2025 according to this article.
• In 2018/19, the $3.02 billion spent on TV production (excl. distribution, exhibition and television broadcast costs)was likely subsidized by the Canadian government.
Albeit apples-to-oranges, the comparison draws attention to the scale of government spending within an industry of roughly similar size to a multinational in a regulated field (where the behaviours outlined could not go unchecked),illuminating the absence of functional governance and mechanisms to address sexual/ harassment, cyberstalking and other inappropriate behaviours foundational to media industry culture in Canada (aka. white Canadian culture). It appears to be a norm for these inappropriate behaviours to be systemically perpetuated at all levels, including at the senior and advisory/board levels of industry and tertiary educational institutions, whose interests lie in maintaining high-profile connections to keep the historical flow of money and profile within their circles. Elsewhere, the situation outlined here would equate to one of the many definitions of what is commonly referred to as “state-sponsored corruption.”
According to the same study, the majority of Canada’s international treaty coproductions in the last decade were with theUK, France, and a small number of other European and Anglo-markets, denoting the sector’s ingrained cultural limitation and handicaps. When viewed through a global media industry lens, it is difficult to ignore the intangible cultural assets minority creators draw on and the growing markets they can access, which white Canadian creators and funders cannot.This can no longer be disputed.
While the legal implications here to Sussman, his board, staff, industry and affiliated institutions are the low hanging fruit, the intended audience for the overall outcomes are the rising minority creators/ media practitioners – to factually illuminate the need for a media industry cultural partition in Canada moving forward, as there seem to be few protections due to perpetuation of white (illegal) ingrained behaviours commonly dismissed as the norm or as insignificant. Minority creators already outperform their white counterparts (pretty much everywhere), due to deeper wells of history and culture they draw on (which white Canadians severely lack), and the established media institutions here have demonstrated they cannot serve.
Let's be clear.
I have never been part of the Canadian television and film industry, nor have I wanted to be. I am a new media/ multimedia artist + researcher, focused on cultures and narratives of the global south, designing interactive media. Prior to this, however, I spent over a decade in dozens of countries around the world as an international strategist + researcher in ad media –-- where I can say with absolute conviction, placing a multinational’s ad dollars in white Canadian film and television programming amounts to a professional fraud. Mostly due to its irrelevance, but also its consistent underperformance with audiences. The same is true in Canada, except ad spending in such programming is government mandated.I remain unconcerned, as algorithmically determined performance indices adopted by broadcasters around the world, will likely go far in eradicating white Canadian broadcast content in geographies it doesn’t belong in. However, the current industry-cultural dysfunction is unlikely to change due to the depth of Canadian government financing across the media value chain. If this were a more market-oriented environment, these situations could not go unchecked nor could the industry remain so white for so long. It’s very clear, the only reason this situation has been perpetuated by all parties concerned for years, is that I am not white nor male. All involved assume they are immune from repercussion because the government-financed system has always enabled this for them, and there is little reason to believe this will not continue.
Sussman has maintained (and housed) numerous staff + board members in the last five years, despite his failed holding company and a handful of industry slowdowns, who without much to do, have spent a not insignificant proportion of their time harassing, stalking and cyberstalking me (and presumably others). This staffing continuity, to some degree, can only be enabled by government financing in some form, as the economic environment during this period hardly justifies it.Meanwhile, in the past couple of years, Sussman has spent much of his time yacht racing in Ireland, where he entertains European film and television execs in his newly acquired hotel.
