From: scooper6@mach1.wlu.ca (stephen cooper 9209 U)
Subject: Re: INTolerance in Quebec (was Re: Political system 'axes')
Organization: Wilfrid Laurier University
Distribution: can
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 03:58:28 GMT

>> 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!

According to the Constitution, it doesn't matter what your citizenship
status is, it's where you had your English primary education.  You were not
educated in Canada.  You were educated in England.  That is why you are
discriminated against.  Did you know that the Charter of Rights actually
broadened access, not restricing it?  Before the Charter in 1982, Bill 101
of 1976 said that you had to have been educated in English *in Quebec*.
This was the Quebec Clause.  The current one in there is the Canada Clause.
>
>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.

Jean Chretien put that in the agreement probably because Quebec would not
have accepted it without it.  But what am I talking about, Rene Levesque
didn't even sign the Charter anyway.

>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!

Nope, that should read "came to Canada", not just Quebec.  If I have kids
(not bloody likely), and I moved to Quebec, my children would have access to
English school, because I had my primary education in English in Canada.

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

These are all children of recent immigrants then.

I do not deny that you are being discriminated against, and I too fully
support English education access to Quebec anglophones.  I however also
support francophone education where numbers warrant to francophones outside
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.

Well in my honest opinion, if anglophones had done this in the past and
tried to speak French at all and didn't force most francophones to work
completely in English up until the 1950's and 1960's, this whole mess
wouldn't have happened.  Let's face it, francophones were oppressed in their
own province until about 1960.  Now that they have political power, they are
taking their revenge out on the anglophones.  (I can forsee I'm going to get
flamed!  Better put on some flame resistant clothes).
-- 
Steve Cooper      |  Internet:  scooper6@mach1.wlu.ca
Waterloo, Ontario |  If you actually think I speak for Wilfrid Laurier
Canada!!          |  University, well... I don't even want to think about it.
Xref: sparky can.politics:11682 soc.culture.canada:10349