Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Cornwall Hospital Flap a Flashpoint of Language Intolerance

I'm often labeled as an English rights 'angryphone,' someone obsessed with promoting the English and Ethnic community in Quebec.
At least that's the view from the vigile.net crowd who regard defense of English rights an attack on French as if it is a zero-sum game.

So be it, I wear the label with pride because it is true that I am a ferocious defender of these rights, but like most labels, it doesn't really define me.

I do in fact spend most of my time describing the English and Ethnic condition in Quebec because after all, that is what this blog is about.

That being said, I do call out and report on ALL language based intolerance that I see, be it here in Quebec or anywhere in Canada.

And so it is incumbent upon me to report upon what I can only condemn as the small-minded language intolerance of a not inconsequential group of Cornwall residents in regards to the bilingual status of a local hospital, one that has decided in accordance with Ontario law to make certain positions in the hospital open to bilingual staff only.

Before continuing, it is important to note that the area serviced by the hospital is about 30% Franco-Ontarian.

Now the bilingual designation has some locals furious because it means that monolingual but otherwise qualified candidates won't be considered for certain jobs in the hospital and that fact just doesn't sit well with those in the community who see the issue as discrimination against unilingual Anglo-Ontarians.

Up to now I haven't seen one English newspaper or online report on the demonstration that took place last Saturday by about one hundred people, protesting the issue, so I'm going to translate portions of two French reports from Radio-Canada;
"The Cornwall Hospital in Eastern Ontario, is at the center of a controversy ever since it changed its hiring criteria to encourage the use of bilingual workers.

Since January,
the hospital is complying with the Act on French-language services in Ontario, but the English-speaking community in the region, as well as the Mayor of the Municipality of South Stormont, Bryan McGillis, oppose it.

In protest, the mayor canceled the payment of its annual funding of $30,000 for the expansion of the institution, with the approval of the council. "I get calls from people who support me, not only in the region but across Canada," he said in English.

Dr. Danny Tombler is the origin of this debate. In an open letter published in a regional newspaper , he was outraged over this new policy and called for a boycott of the fundraising campaign of the Hospital.

"The vast majority of Ontarians are unilingual anglophones, while this bilingualism policy is discriminatory. A clear message would suspend all grants made to the fundraising campaign of the hospital, until the establishment changes its hiring criteria. "- Dr. Danny Tombler
This new hiring criterion does not, however, supersede skills, said the Hospital. "It is important to specify that bilingualism does not trump competence," said Fernand Hamelin, member of the Board of Directors of the Cornwall Hospital.

The Board of Directors of the Hospital is worried that the controversy will undermine its budget, which threatens the purchase of medical equipment and the hiring of a dozen doctors..."
Full credit for the story to Catherine Lanthier of Radio-Canada. You can read the original story in French HERE

On Saturday a demonstration was held to protest the issue.




"More than a hundred residents of Cornwall, in eastern Ontario, demonstrated Saturday afternoon against the policy of hiring bilingual personnel  for their community hospital. A group of protesters gathered near the hospital. The administration of the Cornwall Hospital has stirred up a controversy when it decided to change hiring criteria to promote the use of bilingual workers in certain occupations. Since January, the facility is complying with the Law concerning French-language services in Ontario.
Demonstrators called for the abolition of this policy. According to them, the new hiring criteria discriminates against unilingual Anglophones and may even require the hiring of outside workers from Quebec. They took the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs of Ontario, Madeleine Meilleur
to task because she supports the hospital's efforts. Nearly 3,000 signatures were collected on a petition seeking a review of  full government services to Franco-Ontarians. At the event, the Mayor of South Stormont, Tammy Hart, said she hopes to see the abolition of the Ministry of Francophone Affairs....

The French Language Services Commissioner of Ontario, François Boileau, was disappointed to see so much bitterness towards bilingualism in the province. He added that the Act that services French in Ontario, adopted unanimously by the Legislature 25 years ago, has a dual purpose. First, it protects the Francophone minority. Then it ensures progress towards equality of status of French and English in Ontario. Cornwall is nearly 30% Francophone.

"When you look at such events, we realize we still have some work to do to educate the general population. "- François Boileau, French Language Services Commissioner of Ontario.
Full credit for the story to Catherine Lanthier of Radio-Canada. You can read the original story in French HERE

This story demonstrates that language intolerance knows no bounds and that no linguistic group is immune to selfish and immoral behavior.

I am particularly amused by the sign at the top of the page demanding "EQUALITY FOR ALL
If an employer can demand a high school certificate, a college degree or specialized training, why can't bilingualism be a criterion when appropriate?
Certainly bilingual employees in a hospital that serves two language groups is appropriate.
It is the same argument put forward in Quebec by French language militants who complain that bilingual job descriptions discriminate against monolingual francophones.....Ya think?

Does "EQUALITY FOR ALL" mean that it is unfair for a pizzeria to demand that it's delivery drivers or waiters be bilingual if 30% of its clientele is French?

I may be called to task for this next observation but the whole affair reminds me of the argument made by Southern States in defense of slavery, in the U.S. Civil War. That is, that the freeing of the slaves would ruin the Southern economy, regardless whether slavery was moral or not.
 
Clearly this language brouhaha in Cornwall is an economic issue, not language.

People just don't want to be cast aside from employment consideration because of their monolingualism, regardless of whether bilingual employees is what the hospital requires.

The question is simple, should a hospital whose patients are 30% French provide service in French and should it hire the appropriate personnel to provide that service?

It's a no-brainer.

81 comments:

  1. Does "EQUALITY FOR ALL" mean that it is unfair for a pizzeria to demand that its delivery drivers or waiters be bilingual if 30% of its clientele is French?

    While I disagree with the Cornwall protest, isn’t the Editor also implying that since 50% of Richmond, BC, is Chinese, any pizzeria there should only hire sinophones? Or that half of its staff be sinophone? What if the wrong half went to the wrong household?

    Presumably, he means that official languages are the only ones that count. Would hiring 30% of Cornwall’s hospital staff as bilingual be considered fair (in order to service its 14,000 francophones)? Is this actually what the protest was all about? Curious minds want to know.

    In my own personal experience, it is anglophone Eastern Ontarians who actually go out of their way to try to accommodate unilingual francophones while it is mostly francophones (including the border regions of Quebec) who make much less effort to accommodate unilingual anglophones.

    Naturally, if everyone were bilingual, this would make the point moot.

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    1. It says that 60% of the advertised jobs in 2011 required French-language skills (roughly triple representation of the population) and only 43% of these were filled by French-speakers because they were unsuccessful in finding the number of required candidates. Most of the openings in nursing were filled internally, again with not all of them having the required French-language skills.

      I’m envious. I can only dream that we should have access to such deluxe minority hiring practices here in Quebec.

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    2. @ Yannick,

      Which hospitals in Quebec are administered in English only?

      When the government of Ontario tried to close down the Montfort hospital it was planning to close down two English hospitals in the Ottawa area as well. It was cutting hospital services in general in an attempt to save money.

      "At least in Quebec the talk of closing English hospitals remains in the fringe."

      It's not just talk in the fringe. English language hospitals have been closed down in Quebec. Two examples in the Montreal area are the Reddy Memorial Hospital and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. You might be aware of this fact if you had ever lived here, but you haven't.

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    3. @yannick

      "making it one of the few workplaces in Quebec that does not legislate two Anglophones to e-mail each other in French."

      that's false. two english co-workers can email each other in wolof if they want to. it's associations of employees that have to use french, and not french only. article 49. i have already corrected you several times on that detail. why do you keep on passing crap along?

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    4. @yannick

      "why is there a special section of 101 which says that employees of organizations falling under 29.1 (English public services) are allowed to communicate in writing in any language that they want?"

      i don't know.

      "It's because other people have to communicate in French."

      no it's not. because if it was, it would be written in the law.

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  2. "In my own personal experience, it is anglophone Eastern Ontarians who actually go out of their way to try to accommodate unilingual francophones while it is mostly francophones (including the border regions of Quebec) who make much less effort to accommodate unilingual anglophones."

    Care to elaborate?

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  3. Well, for one example, when you drive along the 401 to Toronto, I found that east of Kingston at least, the rest stop personnel try their best to accommodate unilingual francophones, even if they aren’t willing to utter a sound in English. It amazes me that the PQ, thanks to Camille Laurin, encourages francophones to believe that everything under the sun should be the exactly the same in French as in English, even in Florida!

    For another example, this was also my experience with a friend from Toronto in Ste. Marthe, south of Rigaud and only a few kilometers from the Ontario border. I was the interpreter and discovered that even though Quebec businesses are adjacent to a large market of anglophones, they expect the public to serve them rather than the other way around. Apparently, for them, Gaspésie is a more important market than Ottawa.

    Naturally, these two examples can be easily disputed but this indeed has been my experience.

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    1. Well the ride along Highway 417 to Montreal is very short. I doubt few anglophones stop at Rigaud which is only like 30 minutes to Montreal. I doubt stores in Rigaud see a huge amount of anglophone having to pay more for taxes.

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  4. Editor, I can only speculate. Maybe this protest stemmed out of the incident that happened a few years ago out of a Cornwall clinic where those who don't speak French need not come to their clinic. After all, what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

    Besides, isn't this just about private donations to the hospital? It's not public funds that are being cut, is it? Since you wrote Cornwall is 30% French speaking, do French speakers make up 30% of the donations. Many, many blogs ago, you wrote how proportionately French speakers are nowhere nearly as charitable as the minorities in Quebec. The Jewish General Hospital was built primarily with money from the Jewish community because that community wanted kosher food and rabbinical chaplaincy services that no other hospitals in Quebec even DREAMED to accommodate.

    You stated that English language institutions receive far more in donations than their French language counterparts. Not just hospitals, but universities and other community services as well. Maybe Francophones will just have to ante up more for their services. Are they willing to do it? Your piece on this subject many blogs ago suggests they won't.

    Your blog all that time ago suggested Francophones, at least in Quebec, expect something for nothing. "Let the government take care of it" is their motto. Well, since Ontario is primarily Anglophone, maybe this is their way of telling the Franco Ontarian community that if they want their French services, they're going to have to pull their weight and ante up. The Jews of Montreal did, hence there services in the Jewish community. Not just the JGH, but in Chomedey there is the Jewish Rehabilitation Centre (now a primarily French speaking hospital), Jewish Vocational Services, now secular to serve the community at large since they are partially funded by the United Way (Centraide), the Saydie Bronfman Centre to promote the performing arts, the YMHA, primarily a sports centre and gym and there are similar English language institutions like St. Mary's, Royal Victoria and Montreal General, all hospitals. There are other institutions as well built with English money. French institutions are built primarily with government money.

    It's high time the Francophone community puts hand into pocket and start to ante up.

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    1. Yan: These days, the pasta chaser on the West Island is going to get his services in French because the law demands it. You can't fire a Francophone for not speaking English because the law forbids it.

      What sticks in my craw about the Cornwall situation is French clinics turn down those who don't speak French. That, to me, is outrageous, and I refuse to believe the workers in those clinics are incapable of speaking English, at least not all of them. Anglophones are not refused service in French speaking facilities in Quebec, although nobody may speak to them in languages other than French.

      Sorry, Yan, but your argument doesn't hold water!

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    2. Where are these clinics that don't provide any French services on the West Island?

      If any clinic in Quebec refused to serve Francophone clients there would be an uproar that would be spread all over the media.

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    3. I'm not surprised that your link is to Vigile.net, where the individual complained about the receptionist saying 'Hi' first at a medical office in an English neighborhood. Unbelievable! Outrageous! (sarcasm intended). Only in Quebec. And you wonder why some of us here refer to the pasta chasers as fascists.

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    4. It's risible that someone should describe receiving bilingual service as having been "linguistically raped".

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    5. That reminds me of the Imperatif francais group's reference to a single English sign as "visual pollution" and a "pillaging of the linguistic landscape."

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  5. UN GARS BIEN SYMPATHIQUE DE CALGARYWednesday, April 10, 2013 at 6:32:00 AM EDT

    I've said this before and I will say it again.
    Official Bilinguilism is a Scam. Never worked, will never work.
    quebec doesn't play to that tune anyway.
    French services in Saskatchewan? WTF!!!
    Now we have some radio-canada separatist crying that poor francos can't get service in French in Cornwall? Hypocrisy!
    In Ontario bilinguilism is a huge waste of $$$ alike in Canada.
    Trudeau and his leftie buddies came up with that crappy Official Bilinguilism.

    English in Canada and French in quebec. That's so simple, no?

    Does anyone here know how many $BILLIONS were wasted on bilinguilism since its inception?
    Next let's aboli$h socialist CBC and separatist mouth piece radio-canada/RDI. Yet huge wastes of cash for all.

    English in Canada and French in quebec!!!

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    1. so then your alright with no French language services for French Canadians in Alberta? Does not a French Canadian living in Alberta have the right to medical services in his language? he or she does pay the same amount of taxes as any other citizen in the province

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    2. Right on.Kick Kebec out, the sooner the better.

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    3. Taz: Outside of the Montreal area in the rest of Quebec, would the English speakers get English services? I couldn't find an English radio station in Quebec City, so what are the chances of getting English medical services in the Quebec City area? Or the Townships? Or the Laurentians? Or especially the Lac St-Jean area? Or elsewhere in Quebec? That problem cuts both ways!

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    4. So far, in Gatineau, we can receive services in both official languages. God, heaven forbid, if that changes. Big, big trouble on the way. By the way, Editor, there will be more and more of these protests across Canada if the quebec governments pursue Bills like 14 - the backlash will be felt all over North America with these language militants promoting hate and bigotry against their own minorities and refusing to get along with anyone but their own kind. THE SEPARATISTS are causing their own problems and I, for one, have absolutely no sympathy for them any longer. They walk all over everyone in their path and laugh and gloat about it. Time for the last referendum and let those areas go that vote to leave. The rest of us will do just fine without them!

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    5. You're the prime example of why the English community of Québec are getting trampled on!! To say 'English in Canada and French in quebec. That's so simple, no?' is not only stupid it goes against everything this country was founded on.

      Québec ISN'T a French only province since there are over a million English speaking Canadians who live in this province. 80% of those citizens residing in the Montréal region. The designation of French only was forced upon us due to having a separatist Govt. Every Govt since then has not only accepted that Québec is a French only province but it is now ingrained in all French (and many English & Allophone) Québecer's mind. It's not so much that the English accept this fact but since we have very little power to change it, we swallow it begrudgingly.

      In the rest of Canada, the English dominance in clear but mostly due to the Anti-French laws that blocked the French language from growing in the early years. Of course, you will try to denie this fact but EVERYONE (including the English in Québec) know this is a fact !! Until Trudeau changed the constitution to give French Canadian's an official voice and recognition, French outside Québec was next to zero.

      I'm an extremely hardcore ANGLOPHONE living in Québec and if I see the rest of Canada this way, how the hell to you think the French here (especially the Nationalists) see Canada?

      Is it costly BILLIONS !!! Yes - and do you know what ? Because the rest of Canada didn't spend ANYTHING before to promote or protect the French language previously and to allow the French language to grow and flourish in ALL of Canada. It also blocked French Canadians from moving to other parts of Canada for hundreds of years which is why the vast majority live in Québec. It's the same reason why 80% of the English community live in the Montréal region.

      Suck it up and accept that this is a cost that we need to pay for now in order to give both the French and English community the opportunity to grow, live, and prosper in whichever language in whichever region ALL Canadians want to live in. As time goes on, this cost will go down as more and more Canadians will become bilingual.

      If we want to accept Canada as a country with 2 official languages, then we must ALL make the efforts for promote both languages throughout ALL of Canada. Otherwise, let's get rid of the 2 official languages, return Canada to one official language (English), and continue fighting with the French community of Québec until it breaks our country apart and Québec becomes an independent country.

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    6. I've been saying, from the very beginning, that, at heart, un gars is a separatist. He can deny it, but he is - it's all money and nothing else (like rights and freedoms or justice) or any of the good parts of Canada. He constantly tells all the anglophones on the blog "to move, learn french, suck it up" etc. without an idea of what we are debating about on this blog. Ignore him as most of us do and maybe he'll go away to his Porsche or skiing in the Rockies, or something else that turns him on besides giving shit advice on here.

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    7. English in Canada and french in Quebec would be a good idea, but unfortunately separatist have not acknowledged partition.

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    8. UN GARS BIEN SYMPATHIQUE DE CALGARYWednesday, April 10, 2013 at 4:21:00 PM EDT

      Tone down your intolerance and insults, cutie.
      If you're so unhappy please do not take it on me.
      BTW I own a BMW, not a Porsche. Second, yes I enjoy skiing. Maybe you should try out Tremblant and be happy, spend less time on here and see the world.
      Positive vibes, please.

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    9. There was a reason / need for affirmative action for French Canadians - I think people involved in today's Canadian Society forget to look back. Yes, perhaps going too far back we'll see a false sense of entitlement for some unhappy campers (French colonists) but equally you will see the dominance of British (English colonists) as being restrictive from across the divide. Ambiguity and animosity abound and that is just dealing with the As. Bountiful and beautiful is our country and it is for All Canadians. Without the 'fear of assimilation' card though we have to realize that ultimately this was an English / British colony and the majority population is from the English side of the divide. The minority side of the linguistic divide do need Rights and Representation but this should always be tempered by the ratio from both sides of the divide. We can't sink Canada in trying to make every corner of the country French but we can encourage (without force and cohersion) more support and spending for cultural development together through communities. There are a lot of French NBers who moved out west for work due to natural resource development etc. They must be willing to adapt to English life but the majority must appreciate the difficult transition from French to English culture for their fellow Canadians! Nous sommes Canadiens! We are Canadians! This is majority rule.

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  6. Wake up people.

    Bilingualism – fluency, both written and oral in 2 languages.

    “French power” folks, this is the term brought to Ottawa by Trudeau and his gang from Kebec, Marchand, Pelletier and the rest. They bragged about it and did it. You can find their quotes bragging about this online. I have read them myself.

    The simple facts are as more francophone’s get hired for all government positions less and less English speakers are working for their own governments across the country. Don’t believe me; Go check the stats for yourself. Francophone’s are grossly over-represented in all levels of government including hospitals, law, policing…etc. No fairness, no representation by population. They call it bilingualism, yet the term is never defined on purpose and believe me it doesn’t mean fluency in 2 languages in Canada, at least to the French it doesn’t. No political party will speak for the English speaking majority in this province and/or country. Practical bilingualism, where numbers warrant… is never defined on purpose. In Ontario, and New Brunswick it now means segregation. Nice eh? The French (they are actually metis, a mixed race, a mongrel, a mutt…not french) are demanding French only facilities all over the province, not bilingual, French only. $ Bilingualism is really nothing more then a hiring quota for francophone’s and that is a fact…just ask yourself, why are francophone’s over-represented in all government jobs and how come more and more positions are being designated bilingual all the time? And just as important, how come they are NOT fluently bilingual? Some can barely speak English!


    So a french only Kebec, bills 22, 178, 101… and a forced bilingual-french policy outside kebec so the fench are allowed to be grossly overrepresented in all government, hospitals, police… jobs? Nice eh?


    See what really going on with this phony bilingual, hiring scam?


    “Conservatives” have allowed all of these expensive, divisive liberal polices, and departments to remain, both federally and provincially. How come?
    Until the charter is repealed and we go back to our original constitution, the BNA act, this country will continue to be divided, will continue to further and further into debt, will continue to live the lie of being a bilingual country, and all the spin and propaganda that has come with it, yes the linguistic duality lie, the 2 founding nations lie, the french only Kebec lie…See what he really did? We have lived this lie for 30 years now and its about time someone starts speaking the truth openly about what really went on in regards to the forcing of this mess, Trudeau and Kebecs charter of rights and freedoms. We have fewer rights and less freedoms now because of this hoax, this fraud.

    Don’t believe me folks, educate yourselves please. I suggest people get a hold of a few books -The monstrous trick, His pride, our fall, The tragedy of Quebec and Conning the Canadians to fully understand what has gone on Canada in the last 40 years. You might be shocked but it’s the truth. You will not hear any of this in the mainstream media; they are just too dumb and/or lazy to print the truth, the facts.

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    1. You can tell us to educate ourselves as much as you want but saying that outside of Québec Anglophones are more bilingual than Francophones is just a big lie.

      This comment sounds like an English version of a Mario Beaulieu rant, where someone would want to get rid of bilingualism requirements for higher jobs.

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    2. In the case of Quebec, it's jobs for unilingual Francophones that trumps everything else. It is one of the key elements of Bill 101. According to the law, no Francophone can be refused any job if they don't speak English, no matter how necessary knowledge of another language may be to fulfill the actual requirements of the job.

      With all the anti-English and anti-bilingual behavior in Quebec, it was just a matter of time before a push back occurred elsewhere in the country, such as the protests in Cornwall.

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    3. @durham

      "According to the law, no Francophone can be refused any job if they don't speak English, no matter how necessary knowledge of another language may be to fulfill the actual requirements of the job."

      totally false. someone lied to you, mate. here is what bill 101 says:

      "46. An employer is prohibited from making the obtaining of an employment or office dependent upon the knowledge or a specific level of knowledge of a language other than the official language, unless the nature of the duties requires such knowledge."

      dude stop spreading scheiß please.

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    4. Well, with Bill 101 there is definitely a propensity to minimize the occupational requirement to communicate in English. That is why the Bloc and the NDP (Bloc Quebecois Lite) are pushing to apply Bill 101 to all jobs falling under federal jurisdiction in Quebec.

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  7. Great discussion on 580 cfra am in ottawa with host Lowell Green on bilingualism and quebec. You can listen online from 10-12

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  8. The problem is that the hospital asked to be given bilingual status not because ontario imposed it. The hospital created the problem itself.

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    1. Well, the Hospital Board has to abide by the French Language services act of the government of Ontario.

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  9. If the english in quebec are not considered a minority then neither should the french in ontario

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    1. From the taking of farm land in the 1940”s (The tragedy of Quebec) to the removal of the Red Ensign in Quebec City in 1950, to the removal of the Red Ensign in Ottawa in 1965 to the enforcement of bilingualism in Ottawa in the late 60’s, 70’s…to the nightmare that Canada is now living with (the charter and everything connected to it) its all going as planned folks. Lies, deceit, spin…decades of it. People really have no idea what this man Trudeau and his cronies form Kebec did to Canada.



      In June 1974 the provincial government of Quebec brought forward Bill 22, to make Joual (French patois) the only Official Language of Quebec and remove English from as an Official language in the province.



      This measure was planned by a Cabal of conspirators, consisting of Pierre-Philippe (Elliott) Trudeau, René Lévesque, Jean Marchand, Jean-Luc Pépin and Gérard Pelletier that met at M. Pelletier’s home on Elm Street in Westmount, Quebec.



      The meeting was held on November 22, 1963 the day that U.S. President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas and was to have a great impact on Canadians. The purpose of the meeting was just as deadly as the killing of JFK was to the Americans because the members of this Cabal were looking for a way to take complete control of Canada and make it a Métis (Canadien) Nation.

      What English-speaking Canadians have not realized is that not one of the members at that meeting; one of whom became Prime Minister and the rest senior Ministers of the Canadian government were from their English-speaking community and everything the Cabal did was done in secret to keep them in the dark.



      The Trudeau/Levesque plan was to make the majority of English speakers powerless by quick body blows to their community, something that they would never have expected to come from the Métis minority, whom they had assumed, were without power.



      They also overlooked another important group of cooperating conspirators, that being the very, very powerful Catholic Church of Quebec whose tentacles reached far and wide across Canada through other Catholic institutions that were not Métis, but were linked to them through the Catholic hierarchy. Unfortunately, the Catholic Churches of English-speaking Canada were in open support of their Métis Catholic brethren in Quebec without understanding the real Quebecois Cabal game plan.



      The Cabal’s grand plan was to first make Quebec a UNILINGUAL Joual-speaking (French patois) province, and once past that hurdle to extend the deceit by pushing for BILINGUALISM throughout the rest of Canada. These people were not and are not playing for small potatoes, but are working to take over Canada one province at a time.



      BILINGUALISM is in reality a foisting of the JOUAL LANGUAGE (French patois) on the whole of English-speaking Canada, but at the same time making sure that Quebec remains UNILINGUAL Joual. In effect, they employ a pseudo BILINGUALISM to conquer Canada without firing a single shot. Such was the deviousness of the CABAL, that they have convinced the English-speaking majority of Canada into accepting their own demise as a community by guile and deception.



      “First Quebec, then we take over the rest of the country, one step at a time…through bilingualism…” PT, “How to take over a country through bilingualism…” SD. How ? First comes the right to communicate with gov’t in a minority language (ie French),then comes bilingualism, then comes the right to work in the language of choice(ie French), then comes a bilingual boss,(ie French) then comes a exclusively French department and on it goes until its all French. Its happening all over the country, Ontario, New Brunswick…That’s what’s really going on.



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    2. So it's all a big conspiracy to make Canada... entirely french?

      I want some of what you're smoking.

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    3. Quebecker of Tree Stump - The proof is all around you...open your eyes clown.

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    4. I really have to ask what books and authors they have been reading to come up with their synopsis of the conspiracy theory about french becoming the national language of Canada. Perhaps one of them can enlighten me?

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    5. FROM ED
      As The Newfies say, "Them as can, does; them as can't, teaches others."
      Anonymous has the weirdest ideas about Canada's History. To begin with, there never was a taking of the land. The English farmers simply abdicated their farms for larger farms out west. Those giant prairie farms you see on the great plains were settled by ambitious Scots and Irish who outgrew Quebec. French Quebecers jumped on the small empty farms and toiled the land. Where he gets the idea that all the French politicians were metis, (Half french and Half Native) I don't know.. I think he writes episodes of "Space Trek" or 'Family Guy". Apparently french in Canada came from Joual and all this time I thought French came from France.He probably believes the North West rebellion was started by Trudeau and Marchand while on a visit to Saskatchewan.
      This article is obviously the work of a demented mind who has very good reason to not identify himself. Ed

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    6. FROM ED
      Yannick,
      Right on, most of the Metis became Christian as the male was usually Roman Catholic or Anglican. In either case many were married by a Priest and retained their religious affiliation through the centuries. This brought whites and natives closer together. They often held square dances with a mixture of European jigs and native steps. The official Metis Dance was the Red-River Jig. Lovely, fascinating people. Ed

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  10. I am the person that is holding the Equality For All sign.
    my name is Christopher Cameron I am a Registered Nurse with specialty certification in Dialysis and 7 years experience,Specialty requires 3000 hrs experience to even write the grueling 4hr exam in that field.

    I was working casual in Cornwall Hospital dialysis unit and had 3x applied for full-time position to work in my home town as opposed to an acute care in hospital Ottawa dialysis unit.

    The last full-time position I applied for I was denied the position like the first two because "bilingual requirement".
    The person who was granted the position had no certification in the field yet no experience whatsoever in that field.The person had been sent on training at a cost of approx $18,000 but remained without experience.
    Management had informed me post interview that a bilingual applicant was required.This begs to question is language deemed more important then merit? Yes it is when you considering applicants resume's are not looked at if they are not deemed bilingual.

    This was not in the best interest of pt needs but in the interest of political agenda to attain a quota that far surpasses the needs of the community.

    I understand that legislation is enacted to provide language services "where numbers warrant" but the hiring of bilingual is completely disproportionate of the needs.

    Keeping in mind that Cornwall's Francophone population is 22% :

    Cornwall Community Hospital 50%+ bilingual
    French only clinics
    local health unit 100% bilingual
    Community Care Access Centers near 100% bilingual
    Local Provincial entities 65%+ bilingual
    Local Federal entities 65%+ bilingual
    Local courts 80% + bilingual
    and many more agencies

    I continue to fight this language inequality as what drives me is the same Moral principles that have me treat ALL my patients Equally no matter race, ethnicity,religion or gender.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are totally right, Christopher.
      "the new hiring criteria discriminates against unilingual Anglophones and may even require the hiring of outside workers from Quebec." Too many Quebec doctor are already working in Ontario. We don't need more doctor to leave this province. Also, may I remind everybody that Quebecker are better treated in Ontario than in Quebec.

      Delete
    2. You write of the best needs of the patient, but what if the patient is more comfortable in French? In that case, you could not treat them at all. Honestly, in your 7 years of practise it never occurred to you that learning French and being able to communicate with patients (and 20% to 30% is still significant) would not be a good career move?

      Delete
    3. @josef k.

      yes it seems learning french would also help him get that promotion. and he would be able to offer a better service. and he would make new friends. this has to be the best solution to his problems.

      Delete
    4. @yannick

      i wouldn't be outraged if an montreal anglophone hospital demands his paramedics to learn english.

      Delete
    5. @yannick

      yes i think your suggestion is reasonable.

      Delete
    6. @yannick

      of course you could get it out of me, i'm not a mario beaulieu apostle but i'll need the actual quote and context before i judge him.

      Delete
    7. @yannick

      i don't see anything on beaulieu's blog that is even close to advocating the "ban of english hospitals in quebec". my goodness did i do well in not trusting you this time.

      what i understand from his post is he thinks it's unacceptable that unilingual french patients get medical care in english in a hospital that serves a mainly francophone zone. i agree with that. don't you?

      Delete
    8. "This begs to question is language deemed more important then merit?"

      Something everyone has failed to mention is that being bilingual, being fluent in multiple languages is actually a skill, something you can learn. It's part of someone's "merit". Someone who can speak/write more languages than you has a skill you don't have. Although many people are lucky enough to grow up speaking multiple languages, many people go out and work hard to learn a second or third language later on in life.

      In this case, the employer's mandate is to serve their clients in both english and french (a whole different discussion right there), which means hiring people who can speak both those languages preferably. This seems perfectly fair to me.

      I'm sorry if this seems cold, I can sympathize with your personal situation, but I think employers everywhere, including here in Quebec French-Only land, should be able to use any language as a job requirement. It's a skill, just like knowing how to use a computer program or knowing how to weld.

      If you're upset with the laws which force this hospital to serve people in both languages, well that's another very complicated issue.

      "The person who was granted the position had no certification in the field yet no experience whatsoever in that field."

      That's terrible, but seems to me that it's a completely different issue. I think anyone sensible would agree that people should be hired based on the sum of their qualifications (languages being one of them), unfortunately that's often not the case.

      Delete
    9. @yannick

      "Happy now? No of course not, you'll simply weasel out again, change the subject, or pick up on an insignificant detail to derail the discussion and miss the point."

      on this latest statement from beaulieu that you just brought forward i must say i disagree. i think it's ok to maintain bilingual hospitals so anglophones can be cared for in english. the number of hospitals and funding should be coherent with demography, though.

      i must warn you that it's bad manners to ask a question and pretend you already know what my answer will be. if you know already don't ask, mate.

      Delete
  11. UN GARS BIEN SYMPATHIQUE DE CALGARYWednesday, April 10, 2013 at 1:16:00 PM EDT

    Like I've said:
    English in Canada and French in quebec!!!

    Christopher, you are a victim of official bilinguilism.

    I am a franco living in Calgary by choice of a better job. I ask no services in french nor do I expect any. It's Alberta here, not quebec.
    From all the above past comments tons of posters here are either blind, ignorant or should travel a hell lot more. Especially MikeB from Happy Castle, PQ.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Im glad you're happy in Alberta, but we Canadians in quebec want service in english!!

      Delete
    2. UN GARS BIEN SYMPATHIQUE DE CALGARYWednesday, April 10, 2013 at 4:41:00 PM EDT

      To anon:
      You know what? I've been here in Alberta for 10 years now.
      I gained tons of experience with my firm in Calgary. However since last year I am ready to take a break from the fast pace and I've been trying to get work overseas, namely the UAE.
      I just lost a competition for Abu Dhabi last week and I'll be ready for a post in either Kuala Lumpur or Dubai. Will I miss this place? Yes and no. I'm sure I'll get over it.
      If not I'll be doing the pros & cons of my options. I still stay in touch with some friends that finally landed work in Montreal and Toronto, but they do not hire. Not now. I'd go to Montreal before Toronto any day. LOL.

      Delete
  12. And the FUCK YOU award goes to the socialist faction of the separatist movement:

    http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/quebec-canada/politique-quebecoise/201304/09/01-4639216-quebec-solidaire-veut-sattaquer-aux-veritables-bougons.php?utm_categorieinterne=trafficdrivers&utm_contenuinterne=cyberpresse_vous_suggere_4639504_article_POS3

    Of course some of us want to hide our fucking money from the government.

    Do I get a say as to whether or not I want my taxes to pay for Gilles Duceppe's new $800 a day salary to promote his brand new rolling racism parade?

    Do I get a say in paying for $7 a day childcare...when I don't have kids and don't want them either?

    Do I get a say about using my tax dollars to finally fix those eerie freeways in Montreal before they one day collapse on rush hour traffic?

    Look assholes, I'm working on building a business that sucks up all my money, time and puts an extra layer of stress on my shoulders most citizens don't feel.

    If anything, I think I know better than some career politician how to MAKE MONEY and MANAGE IT.

    I'm sure UN GARS will concur with me, when I point out how nasty looking Montreal is when you compare it to Calgary. Calgary is one of the cleanest large cities I've ever seen. Why can't Montreal be a little closer to that?

    I digress.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UN GARS BIEN SYMPATHIQUE DE CALGARYWednesday, April 10, 2013 at 4:28:00 PM EDT

      "I'm sure UN GARS will concur with me, when I point out how nasty looking Montreal is when you compare it to Calgary. Calgary is one of the cleanest large cities I've ever seen. Why can't Montreal be a little closer to that?"

      Yes I agree. However some areas - industrial - in the spring truly look like Winnipeg: trashy.
      One initiative here is that if there's a row of shitty looking crack houses, they'll tear them down, once the owners were fully warned and even subsudized to fix it up, except by the old army base by crowchild Trail. The city can't tell the reserve council....

      Delete
    2. I suggest people get a hold of a few books -The monstrous trick, His pride, our fall, The tragedy of Quebec and Conning the Canadians, Bilingual today, French tomorrow…many, many books if you look for them…

      How about a few quotes from these bigots , here you go.

      .” ….Given these facts, should French-speaking people concentrate their efforts on Quebec or take the whole of Canada as their base? In my opinion, they should do both; and for the purpose they could find no better instrument than federalism”, Pierre Trudeau,.


      "There is no way two ethnic groups in one country can be made equal before the law....and to say it is possible is to sow the seeds of destruction”. Pierre Trudeau,

      "I cannot swear it but I think we were thinking to ourselves,... we are a small group, Trudeau, Pelletier, Marchand, Lalonde, Chrétien, myself and a few people in the civil service, say 50 all told…we were bringing off a revolution. We held the key posts. We were making the civil service bilingual (French), kicking and screaming all the time". Jean-Luc Pepin, Minister of Industry, 1970.

      So while Quebec bans the English language (bill 22, bill 178, bill 101…), wipes out its real BNA, UEL history, while ethnic language cleansing is going on in Quebec, the rest of the country is forced to fund whatever the French (metis) demand. This is going on in every province. Go check.

      “First Quebec, then we take over the rest of the country, one step at a time…through bilingualism…” PT, “How to take over a country through bilingualism…” SD. How ? First comes the right to communicate with gov't in a minority language (ie French),then comes bilingualism, then comes the right to work in the language of choice(ie French), then comes a bilingual boss,(ie French) then comes a exclusively French department and on it goes until its all French. Its happening all over the country, Ontario, New Brunswick…That’s what’s really going on.

      “My roll as Secretary of State of Canada is first and foremost to ensure that my French compatriots in Canada feel with deep conviction, as I do, that this is their country and that it reflects their image”. “I too had some difficult years as a politician; I’m still having them, in fact, because everything we undertake and everything we are doing to make Canada a French state is part of a venture I have shared for many years with a number of people”. “You know the idea, the challenge, the ambition of making Canada a French country both inside and outside Quebec — an idea some people consider a bit crazy, is something a little beyond the ordinary imagination”. – Serge Joyal, Secretary of State – Page 2 ‘ENOUGH’ by J.V. Andrew. – Serge Joyal – Now in the Senate.

      "The Canadian government is engaged in a task of spreading the French
      language across the length and breadth of the country". Jules Lege,
      l968

      They bragged about how they would turn Canada into a French state and they have been doing that for the last 5 decades….

      "If a law is unjust, a man is not only right to disobey it; he is obligated to do so."-Thomas Jefferson

      Delete
    3. FROM ED
      EDITOR
      When anonymous posts are such drivel must we read them over again. When someone tries to mislead our people they should require at least a name to reply to. Ed

      Delete
    4. @anonymous

      hahaha! you are very funny.

      Delete
    5. UN GARS BIEN SYMPATHIQUE DE CALGARYWednesday, April 10, 2013 at 9:31:00 PM EDT

      ED wrote:
      "When someone tries to mislead our people"

      Racist.

      Delete
    6. @ Un Gars & Ed

      Grow up, both of youse.

      Delete
  13. This arouses a lot of controversy to a large degree because of Quebec. Otherwise, linguistic "concessions" in Canada might not be so controversial every time. But with Quebec pequistes adding gasoline to the fire, every time a concession is debated in the RoC, people immediately think of Quebec. And they're not wrong. For example, while we're talking about the Cornwall hospital, in Quebec the media, with all the seriousness, give voice to a group of "experts" who claim without a hint of irony that anglo hospitals should be banned.

    http://www.journaldequebec.com/2013/04/09/les-hopitaux-anglophones-devraient-etre-interdits

    As someone who identifies with Christian Socialism, but also as someone who is appalled by the pettiness, revanchism, contemptuousness, and utter venality of Quebec nationalism, I find it really hard to reconcile my belief in concessions with my aversion to language concessions in the RoC. Though I think RoC francophones could use a helping hand, my experiences in Quebec prevent me from fully identifying with them. I struggle with this contradiction every day.

    Another element here is economic. A French-speaking worker will serve French patients better, but he will also be a worker (will have a preferential access to the job). So there is an economic element in it too, let's not pretend this is all for the welfare of the patients. Ethno-linguistic nationalism is in large part about economy, though it deals with jobs in a roundabout way of expressing the need for the well-being of culture, but linking that well-being strongly (and sometimes solely) with economic prowess. In the times of work scarcity, and especially scarcity of good jobs, we can expect more and more of nationalist rhetoric in the near future.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I just read the open letter from Mark S. Bergeron to the Honourable Mr. Geoffrey Kelley on the Equalityparty.ca website. I know that the Equality Party keeps tabs on this blog so I must say that I’m extremely disappointed with the way he used the term “LIEberal” in any official communication that he expects to be taken seriously. It smacks of amateurism.

    While I too am clearly disappointed with the Liberals and with Mr. Kelley’s response to the OQLA brief, the Equality Party’s own sophomoric response does nothing but demonstrate that he is quite correct in regarding them as a bunch of cranks, therefore making whatever opinion they are trying to express all too easy to dismiss.

    I too now find my own interest WANING in the party on account of the BRASH letter that seeks EQUALITY through the use of CAPITAL LETTERS that convey PETULANCE rather than PROFESSIONALISM in what should otherwise be an IMPORTANT message.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "...the use of CAPITAL LETTERS that convey PETULANCE rather than PROFESSIONALISM..."

      galganov (lack of) style...!

      Delete
    2. Perhaps so RS but it was well written none the less - I find the anger that a lot of us feel came through but maybe it's time we started taking off the kid gloves. If Bill 14 doesn't go through in it's entirety it will be due to the CAQ, not the liberals. God only knows what would have happened had the whole balance of power been in the hands of the liberals. Not saying they wouldn't have voted against it, but we will never know. We must start looking at our options because if the PQ gain a majority you can bet your ass the same bill will be passed but may be even more stringent. God forbid but there's that possibility. Big trouble is coming to this province unless these separatists back to hell off. Things are very strained on the street and everyone is aware of what's going on. You can feel the tension all over the place and it's very uncomfortable. It's time to start putting some pressure on the liberals and make them realize that we've had enough and their jobs are in jeopardy. It's not time to play nice anymore - that's been tried for 40 years and we keep falling further and further behind the eight ball.

      Delete
    3. "Things are very strained on the street and everyone is aware of what's going on. You can feel the tension all over the place and it's very uncomfortable."

      haha! dude don't spread it too thick. you'll lose the last freaks that still believe your bull.

      Delete
  15. UN GARS BIEN SYMPATHIQUE DE CALGARYThursday, April 11, 2013 at 6:21:00 AM EDT

    More hypocrisy from average quebecois on the language thingy:
    http://www.ledevoir.com/politique/canada/375390/baird-a-enfreint-la-loi-sur-les-langues-officielles

    It's OK for quebec to do everything in French. When a canadian conducts business exclusively in english, all of a sudden the losers quebecois start a shit storm of injustice cries!!! and there is no respect for official bilinguilism!!! HYPOCRITES!
    Bring on the balkanisation of Canada now!!!

    ReplyDelete
  16. It is hard for an English Canadian to fully appreciate the plight of a proud Canadian French person who feels he or she is afforded less opportunity or equality even though they are equally Canadian. It is hard for a French Canadian to appreciate the pride that an English Canadian feels when they think their country, more specifically their constitution, is being threatened. Both have valid reasoning and both have Canadian citizenship and equal heritage. The past shapes the future and the present feels the rub. What I think we should all be discussing is how to help each other. I would suggest that we all consider this help within the parameters of a democratic or majority based government where the minority should never dictate or detract from the majority or federal organization. I don't think we need the government forcing language laws so much as perhaps offering mediation and facilitating resolves through panel discussions. Then again, what do I know - I'm just an Anglocadian ex-sailor down on my luck :) Vive et laissez vive... Live and let live... PEACE - it is the Canadian way!

    ReplyDelete
  17. can bilingual anglophone work for the oqlf?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not likely. There are very few bilingual Anglophones working for the Quebec government as a whole.

      Delete
    2. student,

      of course! silly question.

      Please name one.

      Delete
    3. @troy

      i don't know any.

      but i'm sure your cv would be considered. a recalcitrant buisiness owner might be more willing to consider an anglo oqlf inspector with respect. it would be an asset for oqlf.

      Delete
    4. The OQLF detests Anglos to such an extent that they would never consider hiring one.

      Delete
    5. You're so right Durham - the name's the game with these separatists. File 13 right beside the desk.

      Delete
  18. Great comments on the article in Time Magazine - over 2,200 of them now.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Oh My Fucking God...

    I don't even know what to say about this...

    http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/quebec-canada/politique-quebecoise/201304/11/01-4639986-quebec-solidaire-propose-de-passer-les-reer-au-couperet.php

    Wow...just wow...

    Anectote, where the fuck are you?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Are they not barking the wrong tree though? The RRSP contribution is on the Federal, not the Provincial, side of tax reports.

      Delete
  20. OMG - can we get any more communist? Why the fuck should I not be able to save money in a tax shelter because some bum on the street doesn't fucking want to work? What the hell are they thinking? I'm so sick of these socialists that I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

    ReplyDelete
  21. This just in from Minnesota:

    http://www.startribune.com/business/201720981.html



    Target learns a second language as it expands to Quebec

    Province’s language laws, cultural sensitivities present challenges for America’s No. 2 retailer.

    MASCOUCHE, QUEBEC

    In the Wal-Mart store just half an hour north of Montreal, meat is “viande,” the bakery is “boulangerie,” and the pharmacist is a “pharmacien.”

    If you don’t already know this, don’t bother to look for a helpful sign, or ask the employees or customers. French is the law of the land here, literally.

    “Is that English I hear?” Robert Hadad, an American shopper who lives in nearby St. Calixte, asked a visitor. “You don’t hear a lot of English here.”

    This month, Target Corp. will officially open its stores in Canada, its first reach beyond the United States. But if the Minneapolis-based retailer wants to truly master the art of operating in a foreign country, the province of Quebec offers the best chance to do so. Unlike the rest of Canada, French trumps English in Quebec, a reflection of the province’s deep attachment to its Quebecois culture and history.

    Read more------

    ReplyDelete
  22. How the fuck is favouring a bilingual Francophone over a unilingual Anglophone discrimination? The latter candidate is too lazy, stupid, and close-minded (typical of the Orange Order mentality among Anglo-Chauvinists in Eastern Ontario) to learn more than one language and deserves to be treated as the inferior candidate. If unilingual Francophones were favoured over unilingual Anglophones, then we'd have a problem. If Anglophones want the jobs that badly, they can learn French just as their Francophone neigbours have learned English. If not, they settle for taking a shit job or for sitting on their couches and living off government hand-outs. If illiterates in Africa are able to express themselves in 4 or 5 languages, many of which are not related to one another, and Finns ubiquitously speak 2 to 3, than asking a privileged Anglo-Ontario for two sounds reasonable to me. You're like those assholes from Northern India who bitch that their southern compatriots (big word for Orange Order peons) from Tamil Nadu don't want to learn Hindi and yet are to lazy to bother learning Tamil themselves.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anybody who uses the expression "Orange Order" in Quebec today is a joke and deserves being thoroughly ignored.

      Delete