From: steven@spxtech.qc.ca (Steve Potter)
Subject: Re: INTolerance in Quebec (was Re: Political system 'axes')
Organization: Securiplex Technologies Inc., Montreal, Canada
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 09:12:58 GMT
X-Bytes: 4494

From article <C1DMEt.8Jq@mach1.wlu.ca>, by scooper6@mach1.wlu.ca (stephen cooper 9209 U):
> In article <1993Jan24.114934.13724@spxtech.qc.ca> steven@spxtech.qc.ca (Steve Potter) writes:
>>In article <1993Jan22.193947.28704@bnrmtl.bnr.ca> phallard@bmtlh209.BNR.CA (Philippe Allard) writes:
>>
>>>I am quite surprised to read that you know of many anglophone families
>>>whose children were forced to go to french school. In fact, you should know
>>>that, even if bill 101 forces most immigrants to go to french school,
>>>anybody whose parents (one or both) went to english school has himself the
>>>right to go to english school. In other words, under the current law, no
>>>anglophone is forced to go to french school.
>>>
>>
>>WRONG!
>>
>>Somewhere between 10,000 and 13,000 English mother tongue children are
>>currently denied access to English schooling in Quebec - because of
>>certain unnessecarily restrictive provisions of Bill 101.
>>
>>A large part of my battle is overcoming ignorance on the subject. This
>>ignorance is not restricted to the general public. There are a number of
>>high ranking politicians and civil servants who are terribly misinformed.
> 
> You must be an immigrant then.  The Charter of Rights and Freedoms states
> that parents who were educated in English in Canada have the right to send
> their children to English school.  However, Americans and British immigrants
> moving to Quebec have to send their kids to school in French.
> 

Sigh!

My wife and I are both Canadian citizens (since July 1984). We landed in
Quebec in September of 1980. We were both educated in English in England
and have (or had - my wife's parents died) English speaking parents. We
can NOT send our English speaking children to English school in Quebec!

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms paragraph 23(1)(b) (the educated
in minority language of the province part you are referring to) only applies
to Canadian citizens - that is correct. Paragraph 23(1)(a) provides for
citizens whose mother tongue is that of the minority language population
of the province in which they reside to be able to send their children to
schooling in that language. Paragraph 23(1)(a) is not applicable in Quebec
because Jean Chretien put paragraph 59 in the 1982 Constitution agreement.

Anyone who (even if they were educated in english, or whose mother tongue
is english) came to Quebec after Bill 101 became applicable on 26th august,
1977 (whether they are Canadian citizens or not) can not send their
children to English schools in Quebec. Their children are declared
"ineligible" for instruction in English!

There are about 10,000 to 13,000 english speaking children thus affected in
Quebec.

> One thing I want to know is, why did you move to Quebec?  Was it for a job?

Yes.

CAE Electronics offered a decent relocation package and a decent salary at
the time.

Quebec House in London said nothing of the racist policies of the Quebec
legislature during our 'interviews' before we came over here.


Bill 178 (the stupid signs law) was the trigger for me (and many others).

Now I'm mad as hell and I'm doing my best to get this legislation fixed.

There are ways to encourage the use of French in Quebec without denying
people basic human rights.

There are immersion programs available in English schools here. Anyone
coming here who doesn't want his children to learn French (if they
intend to stay here) is nuts, IMHO.

I have no problem with my children learning French. I think they have
a better opportunity to learn French here in Quebec than I did in
England years ago.

That's not the issue.

It is a question of being allowed to be a fully legitimate member of 
whatever is left of the English community in which we have chosen to
live. That, naturally, includes the right to send our children to
publicly funded English schools here if we choose to do so.


 
-- 
  ///==================================================================\\\
  ||| Steve Potter:         steven@spxtech.qc.ca                       |||
  ||| Expertise/Experience: Computer Systems Engineering / Real Ale /  |||
  |||                       Politics in Education in Quebec            |||
-- 
  ///==================================================================\\\
  ||| Steve Potter:         steven@spxtech.qc.ca                       |||
  ||| Expertise/Experience: Computer Systems Engineering / Real Ale /  |||
  |||                       Politics in Education in Quebec            |||
Newsgroups: can.politics,talk.politics.animals