French versus English - Volume 30

French militant group campaigns for Anglos to be good citizens
A militant French language group is extending its hand in 'friendship' to we Anglophones, if only we agree to speak French in public.
In a magnanimous compromise, the lobby group concedes anglos the right to speak English at home, as long as we speak French when we interact in public...hmmm.
It's not clear whether two anglophones in public should communicate with each other in French...
The lobby group is running a French commercial to that effect on English television. You can screen the ads here:  Link
The leader of Impératif français, Jean-Paul Perreault told reporters that; 

"We deplore the arrogance of Anglo-Quebecers who impose English everywhere. We are reaching out to them to help us protect the identity of Quebec. We believe it is important to speak French in public when we choose to live in a place where the national language is French. We invite anglophones, francophones and allophones to speak French in public." 

Now that's what I call friendship!

The name of this nifty campaign?

"Be an Anglophone, but live in French"

Incidentally, the campaign is being financed by the government of Quebec.

Thanks to TROY, TODD and other readers for the heads-up.  LINK

Committee for the Defence of the Revolution French language
It seems that every region of Quebec is getting its very own volunteer organization of militants dedicated to defending the French language or rather, keeping English in its place. Regions that boast less than 2% anglophones are nonetheless preparing to defend their turf lest the infectious wave of English spreads from the already fatally afflicted Montreal.

The newest addition is the Le Mouvement Québec français (MQF) de la Capitale-Nationale, operating in the Quebec City area, dedicated to the ideal that the pervasive Anglo influence should never be allowed to wash over the region and wreak linguistic genocide on the pure.

The latest justification for mounting these defence committees comes from blowhard Mario Beaulieu who told members that;

"Anglicization threatens the right to work in French as employees from other regions are forced to speak English when dealing with Montreal companies"

Bit of a stretch, I'd say....

As these committees proliferate, I'm reminded of the revolutionary zeal that swept the island of Cuba after the Communism revolution in 1959.

"The Committees for the Defence of the Revolution or CDR, is a network of neighbourhood committees across Cuba. The organizations, described as the "eyes and ears of the Revolution", exist to promote social welfare and report on "counter-revolutionary"...

....Its defenders note that CDR have other important responsibilities beyond their function to monitor the individual's political and moral background; these include arranging festivals, administrating many voluntary community projects, and organizing mass rallies."..Wikipedia

 Sound familiar?

Immigrants fail to succeed? Blame the English!
The hysterical anglo-bashing coming out of the above-mentioned French language defence committees is now bordering on the pathetic. 
Readers might remember last week's  story in the French versus English post, in which I recounted that the Quebec government will scale back immigration from French-speaking countries in North Africa, collectively known as the 'Maghreb' because of the community's horrendous unemployment record and failure to assimilate.
The immigrants were selected because they speak French, but are otherwise sadly unprepared for life in a western society. It seems that most use their French language skills exclusively at the welfare and unemployment office.
According to Maria Mourani, Bloc MP for Ahuntsic and a founding member of the Le Mouvement Montréal français, it's the fault of the Anglos;

"When recruited, the immigrants are told," Come to Quebec, it's French." We're encouraging a francophone immigration, such as the North African community, which is highly educated. They arrive in Quebec, then they find themselves unable to work because they are asked to speak English."

...as they say  down at the unemployment office;  C'est de la bullshit!

Damn those English Magazines!

More complaints about English, this time over a magazine store  having the audacity to pin up English magazines in its window, thus disturbing the linguistic peace of the Plateau Mont-Royal district of Montreal
The veteran complainer, Yves Chartrand makes a not-so-subtle call to violence by advising militants that they should;
 "Get a gang together and meet in front of the window"
("On devrait aller faire un tour en gang devant la vitrine.")

The writer goes on to complain that horror of horrors, the Montreal Transit System is accepting ads that are bilingual, a practice that should be rejected, even if it means giving up the advertising revenue. LINK{FR}

Hijab-clad  teen can't referee soccer match
"A Quebec teen who has been told she can no longer referee soccer while wearing her hijab says she's going to fight the red card.
Sarah Benkirane, 15, said her Montreal-area soccer association informed her she could no longer referee games wearing her traditional Muslim head scarf after someone filed a complaint with the league.
Benkirane, in her second season as a ref for the Lac-St-Louis Regional Soccer Association, was told religious symbols like hijabs may not be worn on the pitch."  Read the story


La Petit Larousse adds French words.

Just like the Oxford English dictionary which does it for the English language,  Le Petit Larousse illustré recognizes and entrenches new words annually to its French dictionary, words that have become part of common lexicon. This year the dictionary made a big jump, adding over 3,000 words.

My favourite new entry is 'smoke-meat' and so we no longer have to officially use the mostly-ignored 'viande fume" which no francophone actually uses in real life.
On the other hand some words have been retired. It is no longer kosher to use the word  'drink' in French, a return to the more traditional 'prendre un verre' is now the rule.

I was thinking about all this (I don't have much to think about, apparently) as I passed a French  billboard (aren't they all) on the south end of the Champlain bridge featuring a lithe and sultry model touting her "Skinny Jeans"
"Skinny Jeans!" my word. Is that actually French?
Apparently so, its use is quite pervasive as I have come to appreciate. Perhaps Larousse next year?

NOW PETE'S SIGN IS AT LEAST  HALF LEGAL!

Islamophobia rocks Rimouski
During a lunch time conversation with a francophone colleague of mine I was a bit surprised to learn in passing conversation, that Muslims were invading the small town of Rimouski.
.......Whaaat?
The city of 45,000  is the regional center of the lower Gaspe peninsula about 300 kilometres from Quebec City and is about as pure-laine as can be. I know the city well and remember eating in a Chinese restaurant that had no Chinese employees. It was a bit weird being served by a francophone wearing a Chinese smock!
And so you can imagine my skepticism at being told that the Muslim population has exploded from four families to four hundred in just one year. I gave it no further thought until I came upon an article in the Journal de Montreal saying that a email entitled "Invasion de Muslims à Rimouski" has been making the rounds of Facebook accounts and apparently has reached Montreal. Here's a translation;

INVASION OF MUSLIMS IN RIMOUSKI
In 2004, four Muslim families came to Rimouski to settle ...
In the  of Spring 2005, 14 other Muslim families joined them ...
In the Summer and Fall of 2005, another 26 families arrived ...

In 2006, Rimouski received 55 Islamic families, some of whom are very affluent and who applied to the City of Rimouski to have at least one street named after one of their high priests ...

In 2007, 65 new Islamic families arrive in Rimouski and  in the Fall of 2007, they received the OK to name a street in their honour ...
In Spring 2008, a new street appeared, near the Wal-Mart, the first street south of Boul. Arthur-Buies, which is now called: "Rue Mohamed Alei SAB" ....

In 2008,  90 Islamic families arrived in Rimouski  ...
In 2009, 140 more families of the same type arrived in Rimouski ...
In 2010, 25 Islamic families PER MONTH arrived in Rimouski  ...

Yes yes, you read correctly, 300 Islamic families in 2010 alone ...
In 2011, 400 such families are expected ...

To make matters worse, according to the same source, 400,000 new Islamic families are to arrive here in Canada by 2015, according to Immigration Canada.

Expect to see Rimouski grow in the coming years with a lot of  development between 2nd Street and Southern Blvd. to Arthur-Buies East, where they own 95% of the property ...

I almost died when I heard about that on  RDI.ca  / Radio-Canada
All this in just seven 7  YEARS ...
Watch-out for the next 20 years ...

The mayor of the city is furious over the propagation of what he termed an urban legend. He told reporters that there are actually only forty Muslim families in the whole city.
"Not only is the information false, but it contributes to religious intolerance, which goes against the principles adopted by elected officials.
He has called in the police to investigate.... Good luck with that! Link{fr}

Dot Quebec (.quebec) to become a realty next year.
Next year the Internet will welcome a flurry of new internet address domain designations, one of which will be .quebec 
A Quebec lobby group Pointe Quebec has worked for over four years to get the unique extension.

The cost;
Over $200,000 to get the  project going, but most Quebeckers believe that it's worth it.
Next year expect the new appellation to appear and rest assured that the government of Quebec will be switching over.
Another Quebec 'country' fantasy..... sigh

Lousie Beaudoin Defends English French Immersion School
"When you think of politicians who might come to the defence of an English school, Louise Beaudoin probably isn't on your list.

After all, the former Parti Québécois cabinet minister is a staunch defender of the French language.

But after meeting with a group of parents from Nesbitt School and visiting the facility, Beaudoin threw her support behind the elementary school." LINK   Cached Version Gazette article***read note

NOTE TO READERS:. The Montreal Gazette has moved to a pay model which requires readers to pay for access. However limited free access remains available. I will endeavour to link to the Gazette only when the story is exclusive. I have however found cached versions of the story and will link to those. Could somebody email me to tell me if this 'cached' link works for you.
Thanks for your help.

Finally;

OMG- We're famous!

Further Reading: French versus English Volume 29