Canadian singer Chantal Kreviazuk revealed this week that she has appealed to Governor General Mary Simon to strip one of last year’s Order of Canada appointees of the honour over alleged inappropriate conduct decades ago.
Kreviazuk tweeted on Dec. 27 that when she was 10 years old, the host of a show “threatened to kick me off if I didn’t stop flirting [with] the producer.”
She shared her experience after reading about actress Bella Thorne’s revelation on the High Low with EmRata podcast that she lost an acting job at the age of 10 because an unnamed casting director accused her of “flirting” with him.
Kreviazuk explained that “Shooting Star” on her 2020 album Get to You is about “the abuse of power and sexualization I experienced as an innocent child on a hit TV show” and “remembering this incident and her abuse [at] various stages of life.”
In the song, Kreviazuk sings: “It's time, you pick up the phone call me / Apologize, yeah, you can find my number / I can't, no I can't forget.”
The 48-year-old JUNO and Grammy winner said she recently wrote “a meaningful letter” to the Governor General about the woman, who was made a Member of the Order of Canada last December.
“Her membership to the [Order of Canada] … is where I drew the line,” tweeted Kreviazuk, who was made a Member of the Order of Canada in 2014 in recognition of her humanitarian work. “I don’t believe in shaming. It was the [Order of Canada] investiture that put me over the edge. [One] should be beholden to a certain standard to be in such a club.”
Kreviazuk did not publicly name the woman and, reached by iHeartRadio.ca, declined to confirm her identity, share specific details or provide a copy of the letter she sent to the Governor General.
“I will happily set up a call with the Governor General whose office I have already sent a letter to on the issue,” Kreviazuk said Wednesday, "but I don’t see that there is much to be gained 40 years later by having this play out in the media.
“The main point is that sexualizing girls, threatening impressionable young people etc. is harmful and itself abusive. We need to do better and protect the innocent.”
It is known that Kreviazuk appeared on Let’s Go, a Winnipeg-based children’s show hosted by Janis Dunning from 1976 to 1987.
Dunning and her husband Jacques Lemay were made Members of the Order of Canada last December “for their numerous contributions to the arts and to young artists in Canada,” according to a release.
A biography on the website of the Victoria-based Canadian College of Performing Arts, which Dunning co-founded, said she “coached, mentored and assisted in the artistic development of hundreds of young artists” and “her work in children’s television has inspired and touched the lives of millions across Canada.”
Reached at her home in Victoria, Dunning said she was stunned to learn of Kreviazuk’s claims.
“I have no knowledge of this whatsoever. Of course, I’m surprised,” she said. “It’s a complete unknown to me and just not believable.”
Dunning said she wasn’t responsible for hiring or firing on Let’s Go. “Maybe this is about something I don’t know about. I can see that times change. I just don’t know.”
Pointing out her long history of helping youth, Dunning said she supports Kreviazuk and is willing to talk to her about her recollections.
“I continue to wish her every success,” she said.
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An Order of Canada appointment can be terminated by the Governor General on the recommendation of the Advisory Council “based on evidence and guided by the principle of fairness," according to the official website. One of the grounds for termination is if “the conduct of the person … constitutes a significant departure from generally-recognized standards of public behaviour which is seen to undermine the credibility, integrity or relevance of the Order, or detracts from the original grounds upon which the appointment was based.”
In an Instagram post, Kreviazuk wrote: “Advocating for the children of the future is never easy. It takes courage. NEVER discourage anyone from sharing a story that may protect a child from abuse of power. And also, tho it may not come naturally to be decent, may everyone think twice before behaving in an indecent manner to a child because well, you just never know who that child grows to be.”