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Elizabeth May Takes Back Tweets About Jian Ghomeshi (UPDATED)

Elizabeth May Takes Back Tweets About Jian Ghomeshi (UPDATED)

Elizabeth May has come to the defence of Jian Ghomeshi amid allegations from a number of women that he was violent with them without their consent.

Sunday evening, May sent out a tweet of support in response to a Ghomeshi Facebook post in which the former CBC host says the allegations about him are false, part of a smear campaign by a "jilted ex girlfriend and a freelance writer."

UPDATE: May posted a statement late Monday afternoon apologizing for her Ghomeshi tweets. She writes that she did not read the Toronto Star's story before writing her tweets and that "Violent attacks on women are not acceptable. Full stop"

"I know Jian in one set of circumstances -- as a friend. I also know that humans are multifaceted. As he grieves the death of his father, the sudden loss of his job and faces a deeply terrible time, all I can offer is my compassion," May writes. "To the anonymous women, I offer you that same compassion and support. This is a tragic story."

May posted the tweet before the Toronto Star published a story detailing the accusations from four women about Ghomeshi. Many users were quick to criticize May for jumping to conclusions without hearing both sides of the story.

Others warned that May might alienate women.

But May did not stop there, publishing a flurry of tweets Monday detailing why she is defending Ghomeshi.

However, mid-afternoon Monday May signaled that she may not have actually read the details of the allegations against Ghomeshi published by the Star,

While we "stay tuned" for further statements, here are some of the most-shared criticisms of May's posts.

Meanwhile, others tweeted that the debate over May's comments was beside the point.

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