Hollywood (and Beyond) Harassment Roundup: December 4

Kihuen, Conyers, Franken, Shervin Pishevar, Vice Media, and Kriesberg, Spacey

I hope you had a good weekend, because these guys didn't. If the allegations are true, they deserve a few sleepless nights. 

Rep. Ruben Kihuen

Nancy Pelosi is a lot faster on calling for Democrat members of congress to resign after botching it so badly with Conyers. House Minority Leader Pelosi has called on Rep. Ruben Kihuen, D-Nev (pictured above) to resign after a former finance director accused him of making repeated unwanted sexual advances when she was employed by him. 

The 25 year-old woman, whose name has not been released, says that the 35 year-old representative repeatedly asked her out and twice touched her thighs without her consent. Buzzfeed reports that Kihuen asked her if she “cheated on her boyfriend," “He followed me to my car and said, ‘You look really good, I'd like to take you out if you didn’t work for me,’” and suggested at an event “We should get a hotel room here.”

In Pelosi's statement, she said

"Across the nation, in every industry, brave women are coming forward to share stories of harassment that must be heard.

"In Congress, no one should face sexual harassment in order to work in an office or in a campaign. The young woman's documented account is convincing, and I commend her for the courage it took to come forward.

"In light of these upsetting allegations, Congressman Kihuen should resign."

Kihuen responded, saying

"The staff member in question was a valued member of my team. I sincerely apologize for anything that I may have said or done that made her feel uncomfortable."

John Conyers

At a press conference in Detroit, Representative John Conyers' attorney Arnold Reed made it clear they aren't impressed with Pelosi's call for the Democrat congressman to resign. 

“First of all, it is not up to Nancy Pelosi. Nancy Pelosi did not elect the congressman and she sure as hell won’t be the one to tell the congressman to leave. That decision will be completely up to the congressman. He has not thought about that. He is thinking about his health. He is thinking about getting well.”

Conyers is currently being hospitalized due to stress. While Reed didn't specifically say that race was an issue, he asked why Pelosi is calling for Reed's resignation, but not all Franken. "At the end of the day, I would suspect that Nancy Pelosi is going to have to explain what is the discernible difference between Al Franken and John Conyers. That is a question that she is going to have to answer.”
 
Speaking of whom...

Al Franken

Two more women have come forward with allegations against Al Franken, bringing the total number to six.  

The first of these new allegations is US Army Veteran Stephanie Kemplin, who says the Democrat Senator groped her while he was in Kuwait, where she was stationed, for a USO tour in 2003. She recalled

"When he put his arm around me, he groped my right breast. He kept his hand all the way over on my breast. I've never had a man put their arm around me and then cup my breast. So he was holding my breast on the side."

The other is a woman identified only as "a former elected official from New England." She alleges that, in 2006, Franken attempted to give kiss her on stage.

"I reached out my hand to shake his. He took it and leaned toward me with his mouth open. I turned my head away from him and he landed a wet, open-mouthed kiss awkwardly on my cheek...I was stunned and incredulous. I felt demeaned. I felt put in my place." 

When is Pelosi going to get concerned about Franken?

Shervin Pishervar

Shervin Pishervar, an early investor in Uber and Airbnb, and co-founder of Virgin Hyperloop One with Richard Branson is known as one of the most powerful venture capitalists in Silicon Valley and a heavy-hitting Democrat donor. What many don't know is that he was arrested for rape in London in May, but was released without being charged. An injunction was taken out to prevent British media from reporting on the arrest and he was "de-arrested," a British legal term. 

Now, five women have come forward, alleging that he leveraged his money and power to make unwanted sexual advances. The women have remained anonymous, but one told Bloomberg: 

"It just felt really wrong, and it was really confusing at the time. I just remember his body on top of me. I was young enough to be his daughter."

Vice Media

Vice Media has fired three employees in the wake of a sexual harassment probe. According to the company’s global human resources officer Susan Tohyama:

“[T]he conduct of these employees ranged from verbal and sexual harassment to other behavior that is inconsistent with our policies, our values, and the way in which we believe colleagues should work together.” 

Andrew Kreisberg

Andrew Kreisberg, the producer of the CW network's superhero hits, has been fired after an investigation into sexual harassment allegations. The man behind ArrowThe FlashLegends of Tomorrow, and Supergirl. Warner Brothers Television says:

“After a thorough investigation, Warner Bros. Television Group has terminated Andrew Kersiberg’s employment, effective immediately. We remain committed to providing a safe working environment for our employees and everyone involved in our productions.” 

Kevin Spacey

Netflix has announced that production of an eight-episode sixth season of House of Cards will move forward - without star Kevin Spacey.

Last night's episode of Family Guy mocked Spacey's choice to come out as gay after being accused of sexual assault. “This story has encouraged me to address other things about my life,” Spacey had written about the allegation. “I know that there are stories out there about me and that some have been fueled by the fact that I have been so protective of my privacy….in my life i have had relationships with both men and women. I have loved and had romantic encounters with men throughout my life, and I choose now to live as a gay man.”

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