The financial institution ran a full-page article in the Globe and Mail on Tuesday, with Brot J. Porter, President and CEO of Scotiabank, writing: Canada. “ “We believe we have a responsibility as hockey fans and sponsors to contribute to the positive change in the sport.” Scotiabank says it is suspending its partnership with Hockey Canada until it “makes sure the right steps are taken to improve the culture of the sport”. Scotiabank cancels its planned marketing and events at the upcoming Edmonton Junior World Championships in August. Instead, they are redirecting some of their funding to the Canadian Women’s Foundation, a charity that supports women who are victims of gender-based violence. In April, an unnamed woman was sued for allegedly being repeatedly sexually assaulted in a hotel room in London, Ode, following a hockey tournament and gala in Canada. Her lawsuit alleges that some of her attackers were members of the Canadian team that won the gold medal at the 2018 World Junior Championships. The charges against the unnamed players have not been proven in court. The lawsuit has been settled for an unspecified amount of money and a non-disclosure agreement has been signed. Survivor of sexual assault and former NHL player Sheldon Kennedy believes that Canadian hockey should provide more transparency and this begins with the abolition of the non-disclosure agreement. “The last thing we need to do is freeze the voices, people who have been abused in any way or form have frozen their voices since the abuse started, so I do not think we should use the NDA to keep freezing. “Victims have a voice if they choose to speak out,” Kennedy told CTV News. The president of Hockey Canada admitted that the players who attended the event in London were not obliged to participate in the investigation of third parties. In response, the CEO of Scotiabank stated that “the time for change is long overdue”. “We call on Hockey Canada to move with a sense of urgency to ensure that the game we love is up to standard and can really be hockey for everyone.” Journalist Laura Robinson began researching the culture of sexual assault in junior hockey in the 1990s. I do not remember a corporate sponsor leaving such a big (sport). “You can’t get bigger than hockey in Canada.” Robinson believes that Hockey Canada is more interested in shielding the body than potential victims of sexual assault. “It’s a deeply embedded cultural issue and I don’t think they’re really interested in looking at what hockey is that causes such violent sexual acts.” Hockey Canada rejected CTV News’ request for a camera interview on Tuesday, sending a statement saying: “Hockey Canada is on a journey to change the culture of our sport and make it safer and more inclusive, both on the rink and on the rink. and in our communities. “We have been on this journey for some time, but we agree that more and faster needs to be done.” Kennedy says the future of the sport is on the line. “In my opinion, what is at stake are healthy communities, healthy children and healthy families. If we continue to see headlines of sexual abuse happening here, cover-ups happening there, who will sign his children? We are already seeing the decline of not making these issues the number one priority in an organization. “If we want to grow the game, if we want sport to be for everyone, these issues must be number one.” Scotiabank says it is suspending its partnership with Hockey Canada until it “makes sure the right steps are taken to improve the culture of the sport”. Robinson says change must finally start from the bottom up. “Hockey is such a beautiful sport that we really have to look very carefully at how this culture was created and make some really huge changes.”
Scotiabank is suspending its sponsorship of Hockey Canada following recent reports of an alleged attack by younger ambassadors at the Canada Games. We are committed to ensuring that hockey is safe, unrestricted and accessible to all. Read the open letter of our CEO at Globe & Mail. pic.twitter.com/LEICJ6AH6i – Scotiabank (@scotiabank) June 28, 2022
