ELORA – Don Kogen has had enough of the online hate that’s been levelled against him, his wife Kristy Hillis and their company Kat Florence Canada.
And he’s worried that if this behaviour goes unchecked, it will only get worse – for young people, for small businesses, and just generally for people who become victims to online bullying.
So the couple has decided to pause the tourism projects they were planning to fund in Elora and focus instead on taking to court those who made defamatory, libelous or threatening comments on Facebook, along with the Facebook page administrators.
“For me, online bullying is very serious,” Kogen said in a phone interview on Feb. 14.
“This is schoolyard bullying, and we’re going to take it on.”
He said he, the company and his family have been slammed on local Facebook sites and have been accused of bribery, smuggling, money laundering, prostitution and worse.
While he doesn’t pay much attention to social media himself, his lawyers drew attention to the thousands of posts directed against Kat Florence and advised the couple to take these posters to court.
Kogen sent an email to a long list of community members, downtown businesses, municipal government personnel and the Wellington Advertiser, notifying them of their position.
“We have a deep love for our community of Elora but recognize that this is a systemic issue we must address together for the betterment of humanity,” Kogen wrote.
“To this end, we are embarking on a landmark legal journey to tackle this problem head-on – a journey that many in our community might not have the resources to undertake.
“Our focus is not only on the bullies themselves but also on the administrators who allow such behavior to persist.
“While freedom of speech is a fundamental right, it is crucial to draw a line where it becomes abuse and bullying.
“Those who initiate, participate in, or facilitate such behavior may find themselves facing significant legal expenses as a consequence.”
Hillis, whose roots in Elora go back five generations, returned to Elora with her family during COVID-19 and started buying historic buildings that had fallen into disrepair.
Rather than tear them down and replace them with condos, as other developers had hoped to do, Kat Florence restored the buildings to their historic glory.
Many of those buildings, such as the Elora Mews, are rented to businesses.
And so Kat Florence has an interest in improving the business environment in Elora as a whole, Kogen said, and has taken on other initiatives to attract tourism, such as lighting the village through the winter, hosting a Christmas market, constructing public washrooms, and finding and funding solutions to the garbage issues in the downtown core.
Kristy Hillis, now known as Kat Florence, speaks with guests at the first of the Kat Florence Icons series on Jan. 17. Photo by Joanne Shuttleworth
Not everyone loved the influx of tourists at Christmas and the crowds and parking issues that came with the market.
But many downtown businesses appreciated the marketing campaign that has allowed their businesses to remain open over winter.
Kogen said he understands there will be differences of opinion. He just cannot accept the hate, the vitriol and the threats.
The Facebook groups mentioned by Kogen are private and require permission to join from the page administrator.
As a consequence, the Advertiser has not been able to view the hateful posts first-hand.
“But there are hundreds of pages of this every day,” Kogen said.
“It’s insane. I don’t understand the amount of time people have to badger other people.”
With his daughter returning to Elora to resume school here, it’s even more pressing, Kogen said, noting online bullying can lead to suicide, especially among youths.
“I just can’t have this. It’s unacceptable,” he said.
And so Kat Florence has put on hold a number of projects it had planned in partnership with Centre Wellington Township:
- $42,000 for Green Space repair;
- $300,000 for Christmas Lighting and grants;
- $400,000 for public washrooms;
- $1,500,000 donation trust fund for infrastructure;
- $70,000 shuttle from the raceway;
- $100,000 Green Space garden care; and
- $500,000 marketing initiative.
The company will also cancel, as of Feb. 23, the $15,000 weekly Airbnb budget they had provided for influencers to stay in Elora and write about their experiences in the village over the winter.
“We understand that this decision affects ongoing community programs, particularly the Village of Lights initiative, aimed at supporting local businesses through the winter,” Kogen stated in his email.
“We are committed to maintaining support for this program.”
Many people were using cell phones to capture the picturesque atmosphere of the village in the morning sunshine as the Elora Christmas Market got underway on Dec. 14. Advertiser file photo
What will continue, therefore, are:
- $10,000 for local pipers;
- $5,000 for local highland dancers crew;
- $3,000 per weekend for heaters and propane;
- free movie matinees at the Gorge Cinema;
- local live bands at the Gorge Cinema; and
- all current lighting initiatives.
“We’re trying to invest in the community but the community is self-sabotaging to allow these people to bully and abuse,” Kogen said. “Now there will be repercussions.”
Kogen shared screenshots of texts of support he’s received from local residents.
Peter Hummel, also known as “Peter Piper,” had nothing but support for Kat Florence for taking on the trolls. Hummel started playing his bagpipes at his home during COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns to show support for health care workers and continued these mini-concerts for almost a year.
“I was harassed and bullied,” Hummel wrote to Kogen.
“And the one thing I learned, bullies’ power comes from those people who stand by and watch or don’t get involved or say ‘it’s not my problem.’
“Don’t be a bystander. Stand up for what’s right and just be a good human … Don’t give power to those people.”
Kogen said he doesn’t expect everyone to like what Kat Florence has planned for Elora. Free speech and free opinions are values he upholds, too.
“People have the right to be negative; feel free to be negative,” he said.
“It’s the harassing, the trolling, the accusations.
“If you call me a smuggler, you better have evidence because I’m going to bring this into the open. It’s the only way things will change.
“We are taking a stand.”
