The year 2021 was marked by a revival of the debate over the state of the French language in Quebec. And it’s not over. The anglophone community’s immediate concern is Bill 96, which the CAQ government wants to adopt before the October 2022 provincial election. “At its very core, Bill 96 is an attempt to … Read more
Rachel Watts writes: “As a Quebecer, and one with a unique perspective on this latest development, I’m of the view that labelling individuals “historic anglophones” based on schooling not only excludes anglophone newcomer families, as well as those who prefer to access services in English, but also puts Quebec identity on a continuum.” An open letter released … Read more
In 2021, human rights and minority rights in Quebec took a sharp turn for the worse. After years of relative calm, English-speaking Quebecers have been propelled into the middle of another language storm, centred on the Coalition Avenir Québec government’s overhaul of the Charter of the French Language (Bill 101). When Bill 96 was introduced … Read more
Journal de Montreal columnist Antoine Robitaille remarks that representatives of Quebec’s English-speaking community should feel a responsibility to publicly rectify outrageous remarks such as those by the president of the Regional Association of West Quebecers who said Bill 96 is part of “xenophobic nationalism” that contains “totalitarian measures”. Robitaille then draws his own outrageous parallel, … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network criticized the Quebec Liberal Party convention last weekend for an “epic failure to listen to Quebec anglos who are worried about Bill 96.” This rebuke followed leader Dominique Anglade’s remark that anglophones are still better off with her party than with the Coalition Avenir Québec, reflecting a somewhat condescending presumption that the community has … Read more
Author Frédéric Bastien criticizes Arthur Ayers, president of the Regional Association of West Quebecers, for speaking out against the Quebec government, and making comparisons to Nazi Germany during the QCGN’s hearings on Bill 96. “We are not Nazi Germany, but we have taken a step in this direction,” Ayers said during the hearing. Read more
Former Quebec Liberal MNA Thomas Mulcair writes that Quebec Liberal Party Leader Dominique Anglade is a very strong leader, but she’ll need every bit of help she can get if she’s going to pull off an unlikely victory against Premier François Legault next fall. Her chosen themes of environment and inclusion are in her bailiwick … Read more
On Sunday, Quebec Liberal Party Leader Dominique Anglade responded to a rebuke sent her way by the Quebec Community Groups Network, which was not amused by her comment Saturday that, push come to shove, anglophones are better off with the Liberals than the CAQ . “Epic failure to listen to Quebec anglos who are worried about … Read more
Despite a lack of concrete proposals aimed at the English community, Liberal Leader Dominique Anglade on Saturday said anglophones are still better off with her party than the Coalition Avenir Québec. Anglade’s comments sparked a sharp rebuke from the umbrella group representing English-Quebecers, the Quebec Community Groups Network. In a tweet, the QCGN accused the … Read more
Quebec anglophones should stick with the Quebec Liberals even as that party is not debating its 27-point language policy this weekend, leader Dominique Anglade told reporters. The Quebec Community Groups Network criticized the Liberals. “Usually a hot topic at conventions, the Liberals are steering around a debate about language,” the group tweeted. “Anglade said nobody … Read more
“Undemocratic,” “odious,” and “deeply problematic” – these are just a handful of the words some community groups used to describe Bill 96 during the hearings that wrapped up at the National Assembly recently. Unsurprisingly, the harshest criticisms came from the Quebec Community Groups Network, the group that represents a broad coalition of English-speaking groups in … Read more
A Quebec government ad campaign geared toward fighting racism continues to conjure controversy. The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) called the ads “awkward.” “We also found the ad itself was just continuing stereotypes,” said QCGN board member Eva Ludvig. “We’re uncomfortable when we see the way the ad comes through.” Read more
The Quebec minister in charge of the fight against racism said the government will correct an ad campaign that some criticized was not inclusive of Anglophones. A series of simple, 15-second ads were released Monday as part of a campaign to raise awareness about racism and to promote inclusion for all Quebecers. But in the … Read more
An advertising campaign to combat racism unites representatives of the English-speaking community and nationalist groups against it. The government advertisements drop the word “Quebecois” in their English version. After having invoked the “editorial choice”, Quebec changed its mind. The message we are sending is that we are not Quebecers [in our own right] protests Eva … Read more
Quebec French speakers know how unfair it feels not to be served in their preferred language when they move out of Quebec, so why is the province doing the same to English speakers within its borders? Neither situation is right. Canada is a bilingual country. People – whether they prefer speaking French or English – … Read more
Many Quebec Anglophones are upset at something relatively novel: the support of their traditional allies, the federal and provincial Liberals, for Bill 96, which many English-speakers see as a violation of their rights. In a blistering statement, Marlene Jennings, a former Liberal MP from Montreal and now president of Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN), blamed … Read more
Eva Ludvig of the QCGN says Air Canada has had a poor record of respecting the Official Languages Act and that it’s “not surprising the problem goes all the way to the top.” During a lengthy interview with the cross-Canada CTV News Channel, she says that Michael Rousseau’s comments and lack of sensitivity, along with … Read more
Eva Ludvig of the QCGN’s Executive Committee tells Noovo during an in-depth video news report that Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau’s comments damage the reputation of Quebec’s English-speaking community and have reinforced persistent myths and long-outdated stereotypes. Lesley Chesterman says she was mortified by Rousseau’s comments. Chesterman describes Rousseau as a dinosaur. Read more
“We could possibly have a mayor who doesn’t get that,” says Marlene Jennings, President of QCGN, on her belief that Montreal’s mayoral candidates aren’t doing enough to support English-speakers’ rights. Alyssia Rubertucci reports. Watch here
Politicians, including Liberal Federal MP Emmanuella Lambropoulos and Borough Mayor Sue Montgomery, signed an open letter denouncing Bill 96. The letter, written by the Quebec Community Groups Network and addressed to Prime Minister François Legault, denounces the reform which would deprive Anglophones of services in French. Read more
As soon as it was announced that Mike Rousseau, the new CEO of Air Canada, would be making his maiden speech to a Montreal business audience in English, he put himself on a collision course with Quebec language hawks. Even the Quebec Community Groups Network, the defenders of English-speakers’ rights, issued a caustic statement denouncing … Read more
For the Quebec Community Groups Network, no official apology can erase the “damage” caused by the CEO of Air Canada to the English-speaking community of Quebec. The president of the group, Marlene Jennings, believes that Mr. Rousseau’s words feed the “myth” that English-speaking Quebecers are a privileged minority indifferent to the French fact. Read more
There is widespread outrage across the country over comments made by Air Canada’s CEO that he doesn’t need to speak French. This, despite leading a company head-quartered in Montreal where he has lived for the past 14 years. As Raquel Fletcher reports, other leaders are now calling for Michael Rousseau’s resignation. Watch here
A public apology from the president and CEO of Air Canada Michael Rousseau Thursday over his inability to speak French has done little to calm the language tempest he sparked this week. “His attitude simply does not reflect the values of our community,” QCGN president Marlene Jennings said, noting Rousseau’s “tone deaf” comments provide ammunition … Read more
“Mr. Rousseau’s narrow-minded comment that he does not feel the need to learn French feeds the myth that English-speaking Quebecers are a privileged minority indifferent to French,” said Marlene Jennings, the president of the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN), an umbrella group made up of English-speaking community organizations. Read more