Common sense Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 Anyone wanting to run for public office in a Quebec led by Pauline Marois will have to prove they can speak French first, the Parti Quebecois leader said as she announced her latest language-related campaign promise Tuesday. The PQ leader said anglophones, allophones and aboriginal people will be forbidden from seeking municipal or provincial office unless they have an appropriate knowledge of French. Marois said the idea is reasonable, given that French is the official language of Quebec. "We will present this bill but it is not just for new Quebecers — it is for everyone," Marois said during a campaign stop on Tuesday in Montreal. "All Quebec citizens who want to be elected as a mayor or a councillor, as a member of the legislature, must have a knowledge of French." Without that ability, a person could not be a candidate in elections, participate in the public financing of political parties or petition the legislature to address grievances. 'Common language here is French' "In the case of anglophones, be it a native or a new arrival, listen, the common language here is French," Marois said. "Is there anyone who can imagine not knowing it?" Marois has said during the campaign for the Sept. 4 election that she would toughen Quebec's language laws if the PQ takes power, and introduce a Quebec citizenship. The latest language proposal could potentially have its greatest impact in aboriginal communities. Kitty Gordon, a spokeswoman for Makivik Corp., which oversees resource development of Quebec's north, expressed outrage at the PQ plan. "I think it's kind of ridiculous for anglophones and aboriginals," she said in a telephone interview. "Are they saying that the Quebecers were here first so that's why we have to speak French? It's like saying the Inuit were here first so you all have to speak Inuktitut." Few aboriginal leaders speak French She says few community leaders currently speak French, although there are an increasing number of young people who do so. "The older generation, the leaders of today, only speak English and Inuktitut but the younger generation like myself, I speak French, I went to school in French up north in Nunavik starting from kindergarten," Gordon said. "But the students today, whether you're French, white or any other race, if you go to school in Nunavik, you must go to school in Inuktitut for the first three years and then you choose whether to go in English or French." She says language has never been a barrier to negotiations in the resource-rich area — which is the hub of increasing mining activity in the province and the home of the Charest government's Plan Nord. "No, not really," Gordon said. "If so, we have French-speaking senior employees as well who are able to translate but there's never really been an issue like a language barrier between our leaders today and the Quebec government because they all speak English too." PQ seeks to establish Quebec constitution The language proficiency idea has its roots in a 2007 project by the PQ which seeks to establish a Quebec constitution and Quebec citizenship. The idea drew outrage when it was originally raised in 2007 from such groups as the Centre for Research-action on Race Relations and B'nai Brith Canada, which described it as xenophobic and similar to proposals by extreme right-wing parties in Europe. One newspaper columnist said the PQ idea is probably part of its broader plan to achieve independence. The party has said it will pick fights with the rest of the country, and use each one to argue its case that Quebec's culture can't survive within Canada. "This one will go straight to the Supreme Court (and that's probably the goal)," Montreal La Presse political columnist Vincent Marissal wrote on Twitter. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/quebecvotes2012/story/2012/08/21/parti-quebecois-non-french-speakers.html You know who's repping a part of Quebec but didn't speak French upon election? Ruth Ellen Brosseau. Of course, she has made great strides in it, but this PQ idea is simply stupefying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shift-4 Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 I am not surprised by this at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jägermeister Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 Quebec: Where what language you speak is a more pressing issue than a $252 billion debt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ossi Vaananen Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 Think Tea Party, it's the extreme French Quebecois that aren't getting enough attention following PQ's defeat to NDP inside Quebec. It's more of a revival movement for something that died with Bouchard in the 90's. If Quebec NDP fulfils their mandate to increase provincial governance then PQ really has no need to exist other than to shout nationalist bullsh*t. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 I thought the PQ was done when they imploded last winter. I assumed QC separatism to be dead. Judging by the public support of Marois right now, I was clearly wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronthecivil Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 What, Jim Crow laws now? I guess overt racism IS the new policy. Vive le Quebec vrai! Le Quebec des laines pures! The inuit should petition the feds to seperated from Quebec and made into a new Territory like was done with Nunavut if these idiots get in and start pulling garbage like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 What, Jim Crow laws now? I guess overt racism IS the new policy. Vive le Quebec vrai! Le Quebec des laines pures! The inuit should petition the feds to seperated from Quebec and made into a new Territory like was done with Nunavut if these idiots get in and start pulling garbage like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronthecivil Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 They have Nunavik which is semi-autonomous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
etsen3 Posted August 22, 2012 Share Posted August 22, 2012 This is getting more and more ridiculous. What an unnecessary and undemocratic law. If you want a French speaker in office, vote for him/her, don't make a law banning everyone else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Ambien Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 I know. If I was them and these idiots got in and started putting in their Jim Crow laws I would be quickly pining to make it fully autonomous. Given how much money that makes Quebec you can bet they wouldn't exactly like that but if they feel partioning up the nation is the way to go two can play that game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanuckClown Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 What, Jim Crow laws now? I guess overt racism IS the new policy. Vive le Quebec vrai! Le Quebec des laines pures! The inuit should petition the feds to seperated from Quebec and made into a new Territory like was done with Nunavut if these idiots get in and start pulling garbage like this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronthecivil Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 I don't agree with the proposed policy, but I don't think your comparison is valid. One can learn to speak French... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOMapleLaughs Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Honestly i thought that was already a rule there. Is English even recognized as an 'official' language in Quebec? Yeah, we get it. You love the French language. Good for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Offensive Threat Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 Honestly i thought that was already a rule there. Is English even recognized as an 'official' language in Quebec? Yeah, we get it. You love the French language. Good for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Korea Bob.Loblaw Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 Its not really the French language. Real french people, you know, from France, call it bastard French. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanuckClown Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 Ouais, c'est possible, meme si le pleu part de Quebeqouis parle Franglais.... Do you really think the people who don't speak french, whether they be the northern inuit, marginalised immigrant, or the english elite of west Montreal (who I personally hate even more than the seperatists FYI) are going to be more or less likely to learn french by being completely shut out of all government? Or is this yet another gentle reminder to those that are not the pure laine should GTFO? What do you think the result will be? That they all learn french (stated goal) or they all up and leave (actual goal)? I think the total disenfranchisment and loss of democratic rights is more than Jim Crow enough! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tearloch7 Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 Nonsense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanuckClown Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 ** Considering this advice is coming from an admitted "clown", I am hesitant to take you seriously ** .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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