The frenglish friction

In October 2020, I wrote a think piece regarding Coalition Avenir Quebec’s decision to inject funds into the Office Québécois de la Langue Française. 

In that piece, I wrote:

It’s no longer about speaking French, it’s become about not speaking English.

I feel our provincial government is stirring up a storm only to later justify its self-serving plebiscite.

And here we are 7 months later...

Québec is set on changing the Canadian Constitution, making aggressive language law reforms to Bill 101. For instance, one such reform is to ban the “requirement of English ” for jobs.

Premier François Legault says: "We have the right and we have a duty to use the notwithstanding clause when the basis of our existence as a francophone people on the American continent is at stake." 

Mr. Legault may have meant to say North America, or, more accurately: Canada— seeing as this language predicament doesn’t apply to the entire American continent.

Also, someone ought to advise Mr. Legault that there are plenty a people with diverse ethnicities that have managed to coexist in Canada without any of their people and respective languages ever being at stake—despite them being minorities. 

With the exception of the First Nations people—the people who were here before french explorers arrived and colonized what is now known as Québec. The First Nations People have endured much harm as a result of provincial laws, policies and practices; for decades, abused,  mistreated and neglected. They, can say that their people and respective languages were/are at stake. The basis of existence of the francophone people is not at stake. The very fact that they write and rewrite laws as they see fit is a testament to their dominance and privilege. 

I’d like to end by saying that I’m proudly trilingual. I speak fluent French, English, and Greek. Though, I admit, my French is far better than my “quebecois”—Samuel de Champlain would be pleased.

Also, I’m afraid these new laws will do nothing other than provide companies with a license to discriminate. And this, during a time when the rest of the developed world is passing anti-discrimination laws—I’d say Quebec is on the wrong side of history…again.