"We must break this cycle": Roméo Dallaire drags Bell Media for ousting Lisa LaFlamme
Since Bell Media ousted legendary broadcast journalist Lisa LaFlamme last week, there has been no shortage of reactions from people across Canada.
The latest Canadian to share their thoughts on the situation is none other than Roméo Dallaire — who’s a legend in his own right.
The humanitarian and retired Canadian Forces lieutenant-general, who commanded the United Nations peacekeeping mission to stop the Rwandan genocide, used his platform to drag Bell Media for its “abrupt and callous dismissal” of LaFlamme.
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“When women who have risen to positions of authority are abused in such a manner, young people — both women and men — learn the same misogynist lessons I was raised on three generations ago,” Dallaire shared in a tweet on Saturday.
The former Canadian senator went on to denounce the double standards exercised by male-dominated companies that “support ego-driven old boys’ club thinking.”
“This is the stuff of the past. We must break this cycle. We should have broken it a hell of a long time ago,” he wrote.
According to Dallaire, his wife Marie-Claude Michaud went through a situation similar to LaFlamme’s.
He says she was “cruelly ousted” from a top position she held for 25 years.
He goes on to talk about Michaud’s book Leadership Without Armour, which describes a progressive form of leadership that “embraces the best of what were once viewed as ‘feminine’ traits” like vulnerability, honesty, and transparency.
Dallaire ended the tweet on a powerful note:
“Because whether media or military, main street or Bay Street, institutions must adapt to a world without institutional bigotry, sexism, ageism [sic], and any form of ‘othering’ or THEY WILL FALL.”
— General Roméo Dallaire (@romeodallaire) August 21, 2022
The humanitarian’s replies are filled with people commending him for speaking up.
“Dear CTV…A direct hit,” one user replied.
“@LisaLaFlamme_ is so fortunate to have you and your wife in her corner,” tweeted another.
Bell Media tweeted a statement last Friday expressing its regret for how it handled the news of cutting LaFlamme from CTV National News.
The cut has outraged so many Canadians that a petition to reinstate LaFlamme as chief anchor already has over 140,000 signatures and counting.
The veteran news anchor was let go last week due to a “business decision” by Bell Media, but many reports with first-hand knowledge from CTV sources reveal the underlying reasons for the forced exit.
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