Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) president Marlene Jennings did not hold back as she slammed the province’s new language law, arguing that if Bill 96 is adopted, all Quebecers will be at the mercy of the French language minister. Read more
English groups in Montreal say they plan to protest against Quebec’s Bill 96, which aims to strengthen the province’s French language law. Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) President Marlene Jennings argues the new language law amendments will be an assault on human rights in the province. Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) is planning to host a rally in mid-May so that those who are opposed to Bill 96 can make themselves heard. “The government has made it very clear that it is not listening,” said Marlene Jennings, QCGN’s President, explaining that the hope is for the public action to help … Read more
Minority rights groups in Montreal will protest Bill 96 in Quebec following concern amongst advocates from different sectors such as health and education. The demonstration will begin at 10.30 a.m. on May 14 in front of Dawson College and will end at Quebec Premier Francois Legault’s office on McGill College Ave. downtown. “As with Bill … Read more
When it comes to the use of the notwithstanding clause, law professors Jason MacLean and Kerri Anne Froc suggest a three-part regulatory framework that might make such use more deliberate. Groups like the QCGN ought to “pressure Ottawa to insist on such a framework being used whenever a province wishes to invoke the notwithstanding clause,” … Read more
Amid growing opposition to Bill 96 among Quebec anglophones, leaders of the English-speaking community are organizing a demonstration in downtown Montreal on May 14. Protesters, many of whom are livid over proposed changes to Quebec’s French Language Charter, will march from Dawson College to Premier François Legault’s office on McGill College Ave., the Montreal Gazette … Read more
The Quebec government would be more likely to drop a proposal requiring anglophone CEGEP students to take three of their courses in French if there was a more forceful outcry from the English-speaking community, CEGEP leaders say. “For a large segment of the student population there will be a significant impact on their career choices … Read more
Côte St. Luc council last week unanimously repeated its call for the Quebec government to remove the proposed expanded language law Bill 96 from the order paper. The resolution says before putting forward such legislation that amends the Charter of the French Language, it should “meaningfully consult with the English-speaking community of Quebec and associations … Read more
On April 7, the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) hosted a town hall webinar attended by more than 60 people, which was later posted on YouTube. During the webinar, QCGN policy, research and public affairs director Stephen Thompson and legal adviser Marion Sandilands explained the implications of the bill, which is currently undergoing second reading … Read more
Quebec’s English-speaking community is coming together to fight the province’s language reform, Bill 96. The Quebec English School Boards Association (QESBA) along with the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN), the English Parents Committee Association (EPCA) and the Quebec Federation of Home Schools Association (QFHSA) say they have “no other option but to fight for the … Read more
Retired Senator and former journalist Joan Fraser has for decades been one of the most insightful observers of Quebec politics. So, when Fraser says that Quebec’s English-speaking population is angry like never before, one must take the situation seriously. “We feel abandoned,” she told me this week. “For 50 years, we have been told that … Read more
Matt Aronson, secretary of the Board of the QCGN, along with Liberal MNA David Birnbaum and Dawson Student Union President Alexandrah Cardona, speaks about the cancellation of the Dawson College expansion project by the Coalition Avenir Québec government. Watch here
The minister responsible for the French language, Simon Jolin-Barrette, has found the “perfect formula” to “eradicate” the English-speaking minority in Quebec, warns the president of the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN), Marlene Jennings. She no longer knows in which language to say it in order to be taken seriously. Read more
QCGN President Marlene Jennings writes: “The QCGN and I have been asking the government ever since Bill 96 was tabled almost a year ago why it is necessary to create a Charter-free zone with respect to a wide range of interactions between individuals and the state in Quebec in order to promote the use of … Read more
“It’s downright asymmetrical,” says Joan Fraser, a QCGN Board member and former senator, on the recently-tabled Bill C-13, An Act to amend the Official Languages Act: “It only talks about promoting and protecting the use of French within private companies in Quebec. There is no word on the protection of members of the [Anglophone] linguistic … Read more
On Feb. 23 during a Quebec National Assembly committee meeting on culture and education, CAQ Minister for the French Language Simon Jolin-Barrette proposed an amendment to the bill that will require students at English CEGEPs to take at least three courses in French, which aren’t French language or physical education courses, to graduate. Quebec Community … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) is disappointed with the bill presented by Ms. Petitpas Taylor. According to the organization, it deplores what it analyzes as an abandonment of the principle of symmetry in the Act between minority Francophones and Anglophones. We are creating a dangerous precedent, not only for us, but also for Francophones in … Read more
The federal government plans to set a target to bring more francophone immigrants to Canada as part of a drive to revive and protect French in the country. Joan Fraser, a board member of the Quebec Community Groups Network, said the proposed law focuses heavily on protecting French within Quebec, and the French-speaking minority in … Read more
A flurry of changes to Quebec’s proposed new language law were either accepted or rejected Wednesday, helping show what the final law could look like as it slowly takes shape. All of the proposals called for French-strengthening measures, but the CAQ government liked some and threw out others. The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) has … Read more
A report prepared by an independent provincial organization reveals a stark labour divide between Quebec Anglophones and Francophones. The 44-page document prepared by the Provincial Employment Roundtable (PERT) illustrates Quebec’s Francophones have a higher employment level and earn more money compared to their Anglophone counterparts. Some argue the English education system needs to do a better job in improving French language skills with English-speaking students. ”We … Read more
“We are shocked, but we are not surprised” by the Coalition Avenir Québec government’s decision to cancel the Dawson College expansion, says QCGN Board Member Matt Aronson. Also commenting on the government’s decision are the chairman of Dawson’s Board of Directors Michael Goldwax, and former Senator and journalist André Pratte. Read more
An organization supporting Quebec’s English community says it’s a question of language – not budget – that saw the province reverse course on its promise to provide $100 million to expand Dawson College. The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) says it’s clear the province is playing favourites when it decided the funds previously earmarked for Dawson … Read more
Quebec’s French-language watchdog is experiencing record numbers of citizen complaints about the province’s French-language charter not being respected. But the numbers don’t tell the whole story, said Eva Ludvig of the Quebec Community Groups Network, an organization supporting the English community in Quebec. “Just throwing out numbers like that don’t necessarily reflect what’s going on … Read more
Many Quebec anglophones are furious with the government’s decision to pull funding for an expansion at Dawson College. Quebec Community Groups Network’s Marlene Jennings said the premier is playing partisan politics. “He’s telling anglophones: ‘Disappear, be quiet, we don’t want to see you,’ and he’s telling francophones, ‘You don’t have the right and the freedom … Read more
In a decision that has angered educators and enflamed language tensions, the Legault government has shelved plans to expand Dawson College. QCGN president Marlene Jennings joins Global’s Laura Casella to weigh in on the controversial move. Read more