Friday, February 26, 2010

Not Enough French in Vancouver? Separate!

It's a sad spectacle to see all the hard-line separatists fulminating in the press in mock-indignation, over the perceived lack of French at the Olympics.

For these people, the crocodile tears they shed belie their true feelings of joy and elation that the Olympics have in some small way become a French/English issue.

Let's face it, die-hard separatists view these Olympics as another sad reminder that Quebec is not a country and watching Francophone athletes perform proudly under the Maple Leaf is just about as  painful as it gets.
In blog after blog, ones reads about a mythical 'Francophone' team and how many medals they would win under the glorious Fleur-de-Lys. Lists of francophone athletes are compiled and fantasy teams created, one which even claims Roberto Luongo as a francophone!

Understandably, Anglos and the English press are annoyed that these nationalist whiners want to rain on Vancouver's parade (Vancouver's had just about all all the rain that they need!)

Chantal Hebert, a nationally syndicated columnist, takes aim at what she perceives as the 'racist' over-reaction of Anglos in reaction to the complaints over the lack of French at the Olympics. She cites several examples in the comments section of various national newspapers as proof. She included in her piece a sampling of what is being said across the country;

You can see all her 'examples' here or just read a small selection here;
"....Enough already !!!! There was too much French. French speaking people in Canada represent 25% of the population and they got their fair share......I’ve had it with the whining!!!"

"Give me me a break! The Olympics are a world event, being watched by the world. Most of the world speaks English, so get over yourselves...."

"....Of course it was quite predictable that the whining would start from those who are never satisfied."


"English speaking Canada has the French language rammed down our throats while French speaking Canada shuns English, even making it illegal in parts of Quebec."
Pauline Marois, leader of the separatist Parti Quebecois opposition party,  picked up on the theme and claimed that these comments were Quebec-bashing at it's worst.
"The PQ leader accused certain English newspapers of tolerating anonymous comments on their website "unimaginable, alarming and unacceptable" against Quebec and the French fact." Link
Now as hate goes, I wouldn't exactly put these missives as excessively racist. To me, they simply  express outrage and frustration that is justified in reaction to what radical separatists are saying in Quebec.
At any rate, you be the judge.

Let's hear what the French radicals in the Quebec media have to say on the subject. Remember, these aren't anonymous commentators, but leaders of the radical sovereignty movement that are widely published.

Pauline Marois, leader of the separtist Parti Quebecois Link
"Canada has shown its contempt for all Francophones Friday at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games"
Josee Legault, syndicated columnist LINK
"Luckily we French weren't asked to dress up as Indians to better make ourselves invisible and inaudible in a crappy show where French culture melted like snow in Vancouver's rain."

Louis Plamondon LINK
"If one wants to end once and for all the insults like that of February 12 in Vancouver, and all the other indignities past and future, there is a solution. This solution is that Quebec becomes a country, a real country, French language, with its own athletes and national teams at the Olympics."
 Mario Beaulieu president La Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste (SSJB) de Montréal   Link
"This only adds insult to the long tradition of discrimination against Quebec athletes by Canadians.....More and more Quebeckers must realize that we should  have nothing to do with this country. This farce has gone on long enough. There are one too many peoples living in this country."

Louise Prefontaine LINK
"Oh they were beautiful, the thousands of Canadians, waving their scarlet cloth, believing that for one night, Canada was something else other than the dissolute cancerous outgrowth of American-ness, having succeeded in getting rid of the culture of Latin French that sullies its divine land from coast to coast....
Oh weren't they adorable, these Quebec athletes, all dressed all in red, standing in the middle of the track as  embellishments for  the mercenaries paid to cite their tearful "I Believe" between ads for McDonalds and Purolator."
Richard Nadeau, spokesman of the Bloc Québécois
"The message that Canada sends us repeatedly is that the Quebec nation, a nation with a francophone majority has no place within the Canadian federation.
 




..."the only real option open to correct this historic injustice that has been reinforced by Vancouver's Olympic Games is, indeed, the outright independence of Quebec and nothing else
VIVE LE QUEBEC LIIIIIIIIIIBRE !!!!!!!
But not everyone thinks that French is under-represented in Vancouver. In an article reprinted in Le Droit written by  Nathalie Alonso for the foreign press agency,  Agence France-Presse, she gives an alternate perspective.
"Defenders of the French believe that the Games organizers in Vancouver have made real efforts to promote the French language, despite the criticism of Canadian politicians after the opening ceremony of the Games.
Vancouver is an English speaking city, where the second language is Mandarin, because of the very large Chinese community. But French, the official language in Canada and the Olympics is still very present during this fortnight of competition.

"It's very different from the Beijing Games," says Christine Sotteau, Director General of the Federation of Francophones of British Columbia (Vancouver area). "We as Canadians, are entitled to have a true representation of the French in the Olympics, not only because it is the official language of Olympicism."

The Olympics will not make Vancouver a French city, but French has indeed conquered the public arena since the start of the Games and not only on the signs.

A little away from hustle and bustle of downtown, the Plaza de la Francophonie has over 100 performances by francophone artists, and broadcasts
competitions in French in a bistro-like atmosphere.

And despite the criticisms made by Canadian politicians, including English, regretting the lack of French during the opening ceremony on February 12, Francophones in Vancouver and elsewhere are generally satisfied.

On a visit to Vancouver as part of his mission to bear witness for the Francophonie, Switzerland's Pascal Couchepin shared the  disappointm
ent concerning the opening ceremony, but otherwise, the commitment towards French was successful on the ground, he said .
"O
ver the last couple of months, we resolved  those problems over bilingual announcements at Olympic venues, all are French and English, including bilingual volunteers," he noted.

Even Alexander Paulin, Montreal songwriter who describes himself as a "defender of the French language" was "surprised" by the presence of the language of Molière during the Games, both in the reception by volunteers and in the signage
.
"Upon arriving in Vancouver, I expected to find myself in uncharted territory," says this artist who is present every day at Quebec House, representing 'La Belle Province' during the Olympics.

The controversy surrounding the opening ceremony denotes that the subject is touchy and that the defence of
French is a thorny issue in a bilingual and multicultural Canada, highlighted by the weight of the Quebec separatists in the federal Parliament in Ottawa.

"It's good that it is the Canadians who are publicly highlighting the lack of French during the Olympics," said  Pascal Couchepin, former President of the Swiss Confederation, which has three official languages: "It's a problem in
cultural policy.
In Canada, French is a struggle everyday.

17 comments:

  1. What makes me laugh that in their fantasy team, they often include many names that will not want to be involve in Quebec affairs. Why? because they are not Quebecers, or some are not even Canadians.

    I have seen the names like Dan Boyle, Mark Streit or Cristobal Huet floating around.

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  2. Je suis tellement écoeurée de ces Francophones-intégristes. À chaque fois qu'ils s'ouvrent la gueule, ils me font honte. Oui, je suis Québécoise, ma langue maternelle est le français, mais je suis consciente que le Canada est surtout un pays anglophone (75% de ses habitants parlent anglais). Faut croire que je ne suis pas militante de la langue françaises non plus... Je veux dire, oui je suis heureuse de savoir parler et écrire le français, mais ce n'est pas l'unique chose qui me définie. On dirait que ces grandes gueules se définissent uniquement par leur langue. Ils ont beau chialer que le Canada fait pas sa part, eux, que font-ils à part brailler? Rien du tout. En plus, ils donnent une mauvaise image du Québec et de ses habitants. Ils sont la minorité qui fait en sorte que certains anglos fassent du Quebec-Bashing. Je trouve ça très dommage car ils ne représentent tellement pas la majorité. S'ils représentaient réellement la majorité, le Québec serait un pays depuis bien longtemps.

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  3. Quebec - bashing - the all encompassing term that blankets any criticism directed at Quebec as if it's somehow unjustified and nefariously motivated. What this province needs is a one year reversal of the status quo where bill 101 enforces English instead of French, all non perfectly bilingual francophones are left unemployed, and all French signs have to conform to the sizes and regulations which English has had to up to this point. Quebecers need a giant f##ing mirror to take a good look at how they treat others in this province, then they might really have something to whine about.
    Of course, this would never happen because Quebecers view themselves as imbued with God-given rights over this land as if they are somehow indigenous to the province and that their desires and rights are somehow of superior value than everyone else.
    There are claims that they are hated and as a born and raised Quebecer I can't deny that after more than thirty years of 101 and the rest of the bullshit, my feelings have become radicallized to a certain extent. I mean come on, Canadian taxpayers pay the salaries of a political party whose only goal is the undermining of Canada and favourable conditions for a Quebec seperation....wtf!!!??!! I no longer feel it's a sign of a healthy democracy but a treasonous offence. The Duceppes and Marois of this country, the true cancers, should be stripped of their citizenship and deported. Enough already!!!!

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  4. Come and see the anglophones buying out Gatineau piece by piece, slowly they are too crying for more services in english in an already struggling francophone community. Not counting all the other immigrants that end up here speaking english only.

    The blade cuts both ways on this issue.

    Chantal Hébert is right on the Québec bashing, you can pull and rearrange your way as many quotes out of your ass, you`re only fooling anglophones in the end.

    So, last time we tried to have a referendum, there were huge banners saying QUEBEC WE LOVE YOU. What happened to you all? Will you let us go next time. No, again you wouldn`t.

    Here`s what I`ve learned from english Canada over and over and I`d love to give some back, here we go.

    FUCK YOU!

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  5. "Come and see the anglophones buying out Gatineau piece by piece, slowly they are too crying for more services in english in an already struggling francophone community. Not counting all the other immigrants that end up here speaking english only"

    Oh no!!! The ethnics are coming - the purity of the race is at risk. Quickly, get the chastity belts!!!


    "So, last time we tried to have a referendum"

    No, you didn't try, you had one. In fact, you've had two.

    "there were huge banners saying QUEBEC WE LOVE YOU. What happened to you all"

    There are plenty of non francophones who live in Quebec and who have been here for many generations. I'm sure they all feel attachment and love for their home. You might have seen them any time you drove anywhere in and around Montreal if you weren't so caught up in your own sense of entitlement. But I see what you're driving at here. Speaking out against what can only be deemed as fascist linguistic policies by modern Western standards and the evident racism that you're not above, must be a lack of love. I don't know about the other guys carrying the signs, I certainly wasn't one of them, but I do love my home as much as I hate what's become of it since the nationalists decided to flush it down the toilet.

    "Will you let us go next time"

    As I recall, both referendums were decided by the electorate and even with the large scale fraud committed by the YES side (after all, nationalists are already used to circumventing pesky obstacles like rights and fair representation of minority populations), it was the democratic choice of Quebecers to remain Canadians.

    "No, again you wouldn`t"

    Again, I don't know who the 'you' you refer to is but on a personal level, I wish you a safe trip out of the country as long as the traditionally federalist island of Montreal and surrounding areas are given the choice to remain within Canada, even as Ontarians. Besides, it will only improve our economy, our roads and the Montreal Canadians get to keep their name. The Montreal Patriotes just wouldn't do. If you're adverse to this fair settlement, then I sincerely wish you a safe trip to Algeria or maybe Ghana where you will no doubt enjoy flaunting your Franco-superiority with less threatening anglophones to hinder you.

    "Here`s what I`ve learned from english Canada over and over and I`d love to give some back, here we go.

    FUCK YOU!"

    You guys have been fucking us for over thirty years pal. I think it's time you took a turn at the straps.

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  6. A Naughty Moose said:
    The differnce between nationalistic pride and outright racisms is being blurred by politicians who are bent on getting thier names in the history books. One question for anonymous, once we seperate how many more years before we can hold another referendum to see if we can re-join Canada? Maybe the PQ would pass a law that would make all future referendums illegal, part of the "winning conditions" clause of a future Quebec constitution.

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  7. "Maybe the PQ would pass a law that would make all future referendums illegal"

    I have no doubt that this would happen. If this province were to seperate the nationalists would rule with an iron fist that would come down on any minority seeking a referendum. If you take into consideration what has been happening in this province since 101, any initiatives they take when the little restraint that federation provides is gone, the situation will become completely intolerable. Which is why we should organize ourselves and exercise our rights and what little political power we have now.

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  8. "watching Francophone athletes perform proudly under the Maple Leaf is just about as painful as it gets."

    This is the weirdest fact of all. If it wasn't for francophone, Canada's flag would NOT be the maple leaf and that is almost FOR SURE.

    It would probably be the Union Jack if we are to trust how things went.

    To protest the maple leaf, Ontario and Manitoba have on their provincial flag, the union jack. So, knowing that, no anglophone would have picked the maple leaf to represent this country from coast to coast knowing also that there is virtually no maple tree west of Ontario.

    As for Richard Nadeau (Gatineau riding) how disrespectful can he can towards anglos knowing that his salary comes from Canada, a so-called bilingual country and that most people in his ridding work for the same country, once again so called bilingual (French and English).

    He only gets his gig because there is around 30% of Quebec sovereignists in his riding and that for the rest, the federalist vote is splitted amongst 4 other partys (LPC, CP, NDP, GP).

    It makes me think of how Gerald Tremblay got back his job by sliding in between Harel and Bergeron, it was and still is a little pathetic.

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  9. I wouldn't worry too much about an upcoming referendum since even though Jean Charest's liberals are supposed to be extremely unpopular, the opposition is even more unpopular than him.

    Therefore, another 10 years without a referendum is all but too risky to happen.

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  10. Et je suis assez honnête pour constater que Vancouver a reconnu son erreur des cérémonies d'ouverture et que ce soir en toute logique, ils ne devraient pas recommettre le même genre d'erreur.

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  11. "The PQ leader accused certain English newspapers of tolerating anonymous comments on their website "unimaginable, alarming and unacceptable" against Quebec and the French fact."

    The PQ and the Bloc are extremely biased on this issue.

    Countless number of times they have sued the Gazette and the National Post for alleged diffamation or so-called "heinous" comments but however I can't remember a single time where I have heard the PQ sue any other French newspaper, TV or radio station for such comments as if French media never gave them an once of criticism.

    Very weird indeed...

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  12. Quebec separatists hate Canada and English speaking people period. There is no satisfying them because they don't even like each other. In the next Quebec referendum I'm voting "yes/oui" because I think Canada has been screwed over enough by those ingrate separatists. Good luck to them with their new country managed by angry anarchists-most who are on welfare and smoke pot. They won't have enough working people left in Quebec to pay taxes and sustain a real country since most separatists don't work and like to point the finger and blame someone else for their own lack of achievement in life. They are haters plain and simple and even after they separate I wouldn't be surprised if they as an independent country demanded Canadian taxpayers send them more welfare cash. They are nasty dirtballs -that choose to live in filth and hate. Classless clowns , life losers who have nothing but derision towards Canada, English language, ethnic minorities and they hate themselves and other francophones too. They should just do us a favour and kill themselves like Hitler. They make me sick!

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  13. A naughty moose said:
    a little angry are we ?

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  14. Je ne veux pas prendre la défense des propos de Jean-Luc Proulx mais disons que j'en prends et j'en laisse beaucoup lorsque je vais sur son blogue. Il exagère certes mais je laisse la chance au coureur, il a le droit à la caricature lorsqu'il joue aux victimes et aux pauvres opprimés.

    Par contre, malgré ses apparences de bourru et de malotru zélot de la langue française que je ne nie pas, à mes yeux, ça demeure un bon jack quand même.

    Au moins ce n'est pas un étatiste contrairement à Louis Préfontaine qui n'est certes pas une mauvaise personne non plus mais dont le discours étatiste à la sauce québecoise me rebute au plus haut point.

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  15. @david,

    I agree with you mostly except on the part of "killing themselves", I think it's a little overboard.

    Anyhow, I do seriously think the same, lots of them have nothing better to do than smoke weed. I did that in the past and it's a waste of money and time besides being very bad for someone's health on a long term basis. Just like alcohol and tobacco, it kills period.

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  16. I was speaking to one of my francophone acquaintances who is on welfare and smokes pot all day, every day. He grows it too. I told him that Canada would be better off if Quebec separated and that Canada should expel Quebec from confederation. He replied that a separate Quebec "should still get transfer payments from the rest of Canada! Otherwise it would be war." Can you believe the nerve of these people?

    If war ever broke out between Quebec and the rest of Canada, the Quebecois would get their asses kicked.

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  17. Hey Tym,

    It is indeed ironic that some symbols of Canada, which are now hated by the separatists, are originally, or mainly, from Quebec.

    First is the name C-A-N-A-D-A which was coined by Jacques Cartier, second is the Maple Leaf (including the flag), third is the national anthem which is created by Quebecers in both version. Also don't forget that the most hated person in separatist's book is Pierre E. Trudeau.

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