|
QUEBEC CITY: REPORT ON MINORITIES PUBLISHED
A commission looking into how people in Canada's mainly French-speaking province of Quebec should treat minorities calls for the integration of immigrants and open secularism. The Bouchard-Taylor Commission says the Canadian vision of multiculturalism will not work in Quebec because the population is a French-speaking minority within Canada. Instead, the commission recommends that the province function on the basis of interculturalism. Under such a model, immigrants and minorities in Quebec would learn French. The commission also recommends open secularism by which the population can openly practise its faith, whether, Christian, Muslim or otherwise. Government offices, however, would remain secular and not display religious symbols.
Wednesday 21 May 2008
QUEBEC LOOKS IN THE MIRROR
The National, CTV News, the Globe, the Post and La Presse go inside on the latest flap over the Bouchard-Taylor report. The controversy over “reasonable accommodation” of ethnic and religious minorities was a humiliating step backwards for public discourse in Quebec, as tabloids and opportunistic politicians gave full flight to their most demagogic tendencies. Now the report on the issues raised in the controversy, commissioned from political philosopher Charles Taylor and historian Gérard Bouchard by the provincial government, is causing controversy itself. After portions of the report—officially to be released tomorrow—were leaked to the Montreal Gazette last Saturday (which has put a three-part PDF of the material online) the provincial opposition parties are clamouring for the government to release the whole thing. In La Presse, ADQ leader Mario Dumont calls it “ridiculous” that “everyone who hasn’t seen the report is talking about it, and the only ones who have seen it aren’t speaking.” The Globe seems to attribute the flap to the report’s careful parsing of issues of language and identity—the hallmark of Taylor’s enormous and widely respected body of work. The report openly muses on the ambiguous ethnic and civic connotations of the term “Québécois” and speaks of “the resurgence of an over-cautious French-Canadian figure, suspicious of the Other.” The Post phones up Hérouxville, the tiny town in the middle of nowhere whose town council caused an international uproar by lecturing its nonexistent Muslim residents about the illegality of public stonings. Sure enough, Councillor André Drouin is happy enough to intone that “tolerance has a limit” and demand that “these people know how we live and that the state is the absolute law. No religion in here.”
_______________________________
ADVERTISEMENT
SUBSCRIBE TO MAISONNEUVE MAGAZINE!
SUBSCRIPTIONS, BACK ISSUES, BOX SETS AND MORE, AVAILABLE AT THE MAISONNEUVE BOUTIQUE
TAKE ME TO THE BOUTIQUE!
_______________________________
New statistics show a sharp decline in the number of tourists visiting Canada, as an overlooked sector of the economy looks for ways to rebound. The Bouchard-Taylor report on cultural relations in Quebec provokes its own kerfuffle after portions are leaked to newspapers. Opposition MPs warn the government that they will derail an attempt to make significant changes to the way that Canada processes immigrants.
Wednesday May 21, 2008 Francophones' response is what matters
The anger of some Quebec nationalists at Charles Taylor and Gérard Bouchard is misplaced and a little premature. Mario Beaulieu of the Mouvement Montréal français, for example, is just dead wrong to accuse the co-chairs of Quebec's commission on reasonable accommodation of targeting French Canadians as being responsible for the province's inter-ethnic tensions.
Wednesday May 21, 2008 What do you think of the report on reasonable accommodation?
A draft of the Bouchard-Taylor report on reasonable accommodation that was obtained by The Gazette urges...
Tuesday May 20, 2008  'Enough about the hijab'
There's nothing wrong with it. It's no real threat to Quebec values. And most women here wear it by choice, not because of coercion.
That's what the Bouchard-Taylor commission has concluded after a year of study costing $5 million.
Monday May 19, 2008 Time to change our lingo
Be kind and say "adjustments," "adaptations" or "harmonizations," not "accommodations." Diana's Reasonable Accommodation
As premier stays mum, French language activist calls report 'revolting'
While the rest of Quebecers were talking, Premier Jean Charest kept silent about a leaked draft of the...
Hérouxville councillor warns commissioners
The man who put a Quebec town's code of conduct for immigrants on the world stage says a commission ...
Sunday 18 May 2008 MONTREAL: REPORT ON REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION ADDRESSES IMMIGRANT ISSUES
A report on the integration of immigrants in the Canadian province of Quebec recommends that native English- and French-speaking citizens should learn each other's language, and a third language too. The report says that Quebec's traditional split between French- and English-speaking people has been replaced by some people's anxiety toward immigrants. The report is by the Bouchard-Taylor Commission, a government-appointed group that held extensive public forums last year to determine how far people are willing to accommodate immigrants and foreign cultures. Immigrant culture became an issue last year when a small town in Quebec passed a controversial regulation that compelled all immigrants to adopt traditional Quebec culture. In its report, the Commission says that citizens' objections to immigrants are often a result of misconceptions. The report recommends mutual respect and tolerance, particularly on the part of the province's majority French-speaking population. The full report will be made public next week. Parts of the report were made public on Saturday by the Montreal newspaper, The Gazette.
Saturday May 17, 2008 Dissident decries 'whitewash'
In fact, one of the commission's closest advisers is highly critical of it.
The Bouchard-Taylor report won't please everyone.
In fact, one of the commission's closest advisers is highly critical of it.
Jacques Beauchemin, a dissident member of the commission's advisory panel, blames commission co-chairperson Gérard Bouchard for getting soft on Quebec independence and says the report runs roughshod over French Canadians by denying their majority status in Quebec.
Taylor ranked among world's top thinkers
Author and philosopher Charles Taylor, a co-chairperson of Quebec's commission into accommodation of...
Time for Quebecers to be more open: report
Learn more English, be nicer to Muslims, get better informed.
Saturday Apr 19, 2008 School program is faithful reflection of Quebec
In September, all Quebec schools, public and private, will start teaching the province's new Ethics and Religious Culture program, which replaces moral and religious education courses at every level from Grade 1 to Grade 11.
April 3, 2008
Yesterday, Statistics Canada’s own data analysts released reports that showed a significant increase in the population of visible minorities in Canada. Today, the Big Seven are captivated by this new research, and discussion of Canada’s multiculturalism abounds. Flying off the pages are results in the form of tables, graphs, statistics, and big, bolded numbers. One out of every six Canadians, or “a staggering 16.2 percent,” as the Globe puts it, classify themselves as visible minorities. That’s more than five million people, among Canada’s modest population of 31.6 million. The Globe reports that visible minorities are growing at five times the rate of the rest of the population, meaning the group could account for one-fifth of the total population by 2017. More than two hundred ethnic origins are represented and, for the first time, South Asians have surpassed Chinese to become Canada’s largest visible minority group.
The Big Seven dedicate much room to various urban centres; most notably Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto and the GTA, and Vancouver. La Presse speaks with Annick Germain, sociologist with the INRS, who says that immigrants with a French-language background make up the majority of visible minorities in Montreal; many hail from Morocco, Lebanon and Algeria. The Citizen, in discussing Ottawa’s rapidly increasing population of visible minorities, quotes a StatsCan analyst who remarks that the growth in visible minorities is “largely because of recent immigrants coming from non-European countries.” The Globe offers a slightly more insightful look into the intricacies of immigration, raising another statistic that shows a decrease in the number of people who self-identify as “Canadian.” Interestingly, Quebec has the highest percentage of people who call themselves Canadian.
Thursday Apr 3, 2008 'Visible minorities' grow by one-third in five years
Blacks, Arabs, Latinos - Quebec has more of those and other "visible minorities" than it did five years...
Only 8.8 per cent of Quebecers and 16.5 per cent of Montrealers are visible minorities, compared with 42 per cent in Toronto and in Vancouver, Statistics Canada reports.
But the number of Quebec minorities - South Asians, Chinese, blacks, Filipinos, Latinos and Southeast Asians, about 655,000 in all - is growing rapidly.
Thursday Mar 6, 2008 Deadline extended for Bouchard-Taylor report
The Quebec cabinet has extended from March 31 to May 31 the deadline for the Bouchard-Taylor report on the reasonable accommodation of cultural differences. The commissioners asked for the delay, saying they have a lot of work to do and many documents to consult. "Our public consultations finished just before Christmas, leaving us barely two months to produce our report," they said in their letter to the cabinet.
Monday Feb 18, 2008 Sharia-law fight mirrors our debate on accommodation
The archbishop of Canterbury's call to incorporate certain principles of Sharia law within the British legal system has set off a firestorm. Rowan Williams's suggestion that Muslim tribunals should play a more active role in the justice system touched a nerve in British society that mirrors some concerns in Quebec's debate on reasonable accommodation.
Tuesday Feb 12, 2008 Poll finds Canadians don't buy into notion of one continent, one culture
When it comes to culture, we're different from those Yanks, eh!
02 February 2008 MONTREAL: COMMISSION HOLDS FINAL HEARING ON REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION
About 200 people gathered in Montreal on Sunday to address a government-appointed commission gathering information about people's attitudes towards immigrants and their cultures in the mainly French-speaking province of Quebec. The session marks the end of several months of public hearings. The commission wants to determine to what extent native-born Quebeckers think that they should accommodate foreign customs. But some Quebeckers have told the hearings that they expect immigrants to adapt to local rules and traditions. The so-called reasonable accommodation commission chaired by Charles Taylor and Gerard Bouchard is expected to deliver its report at the end of next month. The report could be used by provincial government officials in creating policies for Quebec's increasingly multi-cultural population.
Monday Feb 4, 2008 Definition of equality debated
Liberty, equality and fraternity - but especially equality.
Trouble is, there's no consensus on what equality really means in Quebec - or whether it exists, in fact.
....By day's end, equality in its many forms - equal opportunity on the job market, equality of visible minorities and old-stock Quebecers, equality of men and women - came out on top. But not without some argument.
2007
Saturday Dec 22, 2007 We're on the fence about hearings' value
Quebecers are divided about whether the Bouchard-Taylor commission's hearings were a useful exercise...
Thursday Dec 20, 2007 Only a tiny minority voiced slurs, report finds
Muslims were called dirty, violent and sexist. Jews were called money-grubbing, litigious and rude. ...
Wednesday Dec 19, 2007 "Joyeux Noël, merci beaucoup." With that decidedly Christian
wish and thanks, Gérard Bouchard... Saturday Dec 15, 2007 Help us overcome prejudice, commissioners urge Muslims
Back in March, they were castigated in the populist media for insisting on praying at a Quebec maple...
id=6d3efd1a-a483-4591-8035-3a2583038059&k=87811">Marois outlines 'audacious' visionCalling the Bouchard-Taylor commission "a perilous exercise,"
Parti Québécois leader Pauline Marois yesterday laid out her vision
of Quebec as a place where immigrants should learn more French,
businesses shouldn't get government contracts if they don't have a
francization program, and Christianity should get priority in the
religious curriculum of schools. |
Friday Dec 14, 2007 One size will not fit all, anglo group says
Quebec's 608,000 anglophones have buried the hatchet with the province's francophone majority and think...
Thursday Dec 13, 2007 Anglos have their turn at hearing
Quebec's 608,000 anglophones have buried the hatchet with Quebec's francophone majority, are happy with the French-language charter, and think the primacy of French is "extremely important," the Bouchard-Taylor commission heard this morning.
But when it comes to treatment of immigrants and their cultural differences, anglophones don't agree that Quebec should adopt a blanket policy to treat them with a "one-size-fits-all" policy of integration, an anglo advocacy group said.
Church gave Quebec a lot, cardinal says
Distancing himself from Canadian Roman Catholic primate Marc Ouellet, who last month apologized for Among those mistakes, he cited attitudes and actions that encouraged "anti-Semitism, racism, indifference to First Nations and discrimination against women and homosexuals."
Halt school religion course: Dumont
Mario Dumont, leader of the Action démocratique du Québec opposition, wants a moratorium on the new ...
Wednesday 12 December 2007 MONTREAL: FEDERAL SEPARATIST REJECTS MULTICULTURALISM
The leader of a federal opposition party in Canada has spoken before a Quebec commission looking into the reasonable accommodation of minorities in the mainly French-speaking province. Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe told the panel that Quebec must be exempt from Canadian multiculturalism laws so the province can protect its own culture. Mr. Duceppe said Canadian-style multiculturalism doesn't work in the province and that is why Quebec needs to integrate immigrants to secure the future of the French language and francophone culture. The Bloc favours independence for the largely French-speaking province. The special commission led by academics Charles Taylor and Gérard Bouchard has been holding public hearings around the province. Some people have expressed the opinion that the hearings have encouraged a disproportionate number of angry people to express their opinions.
Tuesday 11 December 2007 MONTREAL: CORONER WEIGHS IN ON ACCOMMODATIONS
A Quebec coroner offered advice at the travelling hearings in the province regarding the concessions that can be consented to minorities. Dr. Jacques Ramsay presented reports on the recent deaths of four immigrants which he claims could have been prevented. One of the cases was that of an Albanian immigrant who entered a psychotic state and killed himself after mistakenly understanding that his wife had been diagnosed with HIV. In fact, hospital staff had told him that his wife's blood type was A positive. Dr. Ramsay says that health-care workers should start from the premise that no accommodation is unreasonable when it's a question of health.
Wednesday 05 December 2007
CANADA'S NEW LOOK
by Jordan Himelfarb
December 5, 2007
According to new
census data, the proportion of foreign-born Canadian citizens is higher
now than at any time since 1931, when Canada ceased to be a British colony.
Statistics Canada announced yesterday that, after the arrival of 1.1
million newcomers to the country between 2001 and 2006, immigrants now
constitute one-fifth of the Canadian population. As several sources point
out, these numbers will come as no surprise to those who travel on the
Toronto subway, which, MediaScout supposes, must be full of visible
minorities. Indeed, by far the largest part of the recent immigrant influx
has taken place in metropolitan centres such as Toronto, Montreal,
Vancouver and Calgary—and their suburbs—where employment
opportunities are thought to be more plentiful. The census figures also
show that an unprecedented 20 percent of Canadians possess a mother tongue
other than French or English, with Chinese dialects far outpacing French as
the second most commonly spoken language in some areas of the country.
The Big Seven do a massive job of unpacking the significance of the latest
data, submitting the numbers to thorough and varied
analyses. An editorial in the
Star worries that competition over jobs might breed resentment toward
newcomers, while the
Globe expresses concern about the potentially isolating trend of
immigrant migration to the traditionally less accommodating suburbs. John
Barber in the Globe (subscription required) suggests that, because of
the hugely disproportionate foreign-born population of big cities like
Toronto compared to the rest of the country, a clash may be in the offing,
“with the metropolitan bolus becoming ever less tolerable to the
Canadian craw.” Several
sources report on
the relative vitality
of French in Quebec, and its apparent moribundity
elsewhere in the country—a discrepancy Chantal Hébert
takes in the Star as a starting point for her salvo on the state of
bilingualism in Canada. Given the debate over reasonable accommodation in
Quebec and the recent squabbles over religious school funding in Ontario,
it will be interesting to see how the media interprets these demographic
trends in the ongoing struggle to define Canada.
Wednesday Dec 5, 2007 Anglo numbers rise for first time since 1976
Chinese jumps into third spot for newcomers to Montreal
...Quebec had the biggest proportional jump in number of foreign-born residents in Canada, with Chinese replacing Creole as the third top language among newcomers in Montreal, after Arabic and Spanish.
A minority on the island
Francophones are now a minority on Montreal Island.
City's newcomers more diverse
Immigration from Asia dominates in Toronto and Vancouver, but newcomers are more diverse in Montreal...
Thursday Nov 29, 2007 A newcomer to Quebec says he expects members of his family to be accepted for who they are... Wednesday Nov 28, 2007 Diverse portraits of modern Quebec
They stood in the first and second row to speak: an 11-year-old boy in a bright red poncho, a French...
Outside, on the convention centre's top floor, about 30 protesters bellowed into megaphones about "the racist commission," broadcast feedback, played music and banged the walls to compete with the amplified voices in the meeting hall.
Wednesday 28 November 2007 1:08 MONTREAL: QUEBEC IMMIGRANTS SAID NOT TO BE A THREAT
Two academics have told the travelling public forum on the subject of accommodating minorities that the practices of religious and cultural minority are not a threat. In a written submission to the Bouchard-Taylor Commission, Professor emeritus Louis Balthazar of Laval University writes that too many Quebecers think that cultural communities benefit from "favours, privileges and excessive accommodations," which he says is false. Prof. Balthasar believes that it's important not to make immigrants bear all the weight of social unease that may exist in the province's largely French-speaking society. Montreal is home to the vast majority of immigrants to Quebec. The Commission has heard complaints that Muslim, Jewish and Sikh minorities have failed to embrace francophone culture. Prof. Balthasar says that in fact more than 60 per cent of newcomers integrate into the francophone culture. The Commission also heard from Victor Armony, a sociology professor at l'Université du Québec à Montréal, who says talk about immigrants undermining society worry him. He mentioned in particular the leader of l'Action Démocratique party, Mario Dumont, who he claims deliberately distorts reality.
Tuesday Nov 27, 2007 We're afraid to say no: teachers
Quebec schools and health-care institutions are afraid of being sued or condemned in the media over
....Sikhs who want to wear ceremonial bracelets on their wrist in gym class, other kirpan-toting Sikhs who ask to go on a field trip to Parliament Hill or the National Assembly, and Muslim girls who want to be exempted from swim class because there are boys there - all are problematic for schools,
[not in Canada]
Monday Nov 26, 2007 Hijab and soccer: another red card
'Ref said it was for safety reasons' Calgary girl, 14, walked off field 'in tears'
[Canada rules apply!]
Friday Nov 23, 2007 Muslims worry about 'tarnished' image
Rein in 'preachers of hate,' commission told
The burgeoning Muslim population in Quebec is organizing itself to avoid "exaggerated" demands for special treatment and to rein in "preachers of hate," the Bouchard-Taylor commission was told yesterday.
"The Muslim community is large, but distinctions must be made," said Abdallah Annab, president of the Association des marocaines et des marocains de l'Estrie, which represents many of the 1,500 Muslims in the Eastern Townships.
Friday Nov 23, 2007 Comment: Quebec debates opening wounds
When Quebec Premier Jean Charest appointed two respected intellectuals last spring to study the "reasonable accommodation" of minority cultural practices...
Friday Nov 23, 2007 Comment: Quebec Muslims work to rein in 'preachers of hate'
The burgeoning Muslim population in Quebec is organizing itself to avoid "exaggerated" demands for special treatment and rein in "preachers of hate,"
Thursday Nov 22, 2007
'Forgive us' Quebec Catholic bishop issues unsolicited apology for 'harm'  In an effort to bring Quebecers back to
Catholicism, the Church's top bishop in the province has issued...
Wednesday Nov 21, 2007 The Bouchard-Taylor hearings aside, Canadians are more tolerant
"I have often regretted my speech, never my silence," Greek philosopher Xenocrates said. One wonders whether, when the Bouchard-Taylor commission on reasonable accommodation has aired the thoughts of every Quebecer who chooses to take the microphone, the province (and indeed the rest of Canada) will feel satisfaction or regret.
...Environics polling finds that there has been a recent spasm of concern about the integration of newcomers into Canadian society. Between 2005 and 2006, the proportion of Canadians believing that "Too many immigrants do not adopt Canadian values" jumped to 65 per cent from 58 per cent. This is not a trivial finding, but nor is it the whole story
Saturday Nov 17, 2007 What were they expecting?
In this cynical age, it's reassuring to know there are still people as naive as Gérard Bouchard and Charles Taylor.
TORONTO: COMPUTER GLITCH DISRUPTS THOUSANDS OF AIR TRAVELLERS
Thousands of air travellers were inconvenienced on Friday morning by computer troubles at Air Canada, as flights were delayed between 30 minutes to an hour. The problem was caused by broken links between the airline's main reservation computer at Pearson International Airport and those in the different airports across the country. The director general at Pearson, John Segaert, explained that the facility was temporarily unable to print boarding passes. Flights were running normally by afternoon.
Sunday Nov 11, 2007 Is debate damaging Quebec's reputation? Or, does anyone care?
There have been dire warnings of late that the fuss over reasonable accommodation is giving Quebec a bad name in the rest of the world.
VANCOUVER: PM SAYS QUEBEC MINORITIES DEBATE UNNEEDED
Prime Minister Stephen Harper says the public debates about "reasonable accomodation" for minorities is something that Quebecers could do without. The prime minister says Quebecers don't want to get "bogged down" in old debates but prefer to move forward. Mr. Harper says residents in the largely French-speaking province in particular are fatigued with the traditional debate between separatism on the one hand and centralization on the other. The prime minister's views contrast with those of Gov.-Gen. Michael Jean, Canada's first black representative of the Queen. Mrs. Jean said in September that the current series of public hearings in Quebec are a healthy exercise that should take place elsewhere in the country as well. The governor general immigrated from Haiti to Quebec where she grew up when she was a child.
Tuesday Nov 6, 2007 Don't look to Drummondville for final word on reasonable accommodation
This was the town where poutine was first sold in a fast-food joint 43 years ago, locals say.
There were calls for immigrants to assimilate, and calls for them to be left alone.
There were exhortations for good Catholics to embrace other religions and demands by other Catholics for public schools to keep teaching their religion.
There were invitations by moderate Muslims to "show the real image of Islam: peace" and even take to the streets to demonstrate against extremists.
Saturday Nov 3, 2007 Losing faith in Quebec
MONTREAL -Since the founding of Quebec, its schools have given a central place to Christian instruction...
Saturday Nov 3, 2007
How has reasonable accommodation affected your life in Quebec? Read the stories, share your... Immigrants must be made to feel at home
Weeks of emotional outpourings at the Bouchard-Taylor
commission have fortunately not dissuaded the Charest government
from setting an ambitious immigration target.
Friday Nov 2, 2007
Reasonable-accommodation debate not limited to Quebec
When Mordecai Richler died in 2001, most English-language obituaries omitted the nasty things he had written about Canadians while living in London and New York. In part, that's because Richler had ceased denigrating Canadian nationalism and culture and had turned his attention to Quebec by the time he returned home. And the Jewish community, which sometimes displays a tendency to worship at the altar of success in its ranks no matter how that success is gained, had long ago forgiven his youthful writings about its various foibles....
My Oxford English Dictionary defines tolerance as "the disposition to be patient with or indulgent to the opinions or practices of others; freedom from bigotry or undue severity in judging the conduct of others; forbearance; catholicity of spirit." And, to be frank, "tolerant" is not a word I normally favour, as it implies a minority group is less worthy than the majority. "Respect," on the other hand, carries a connotation of equality. But, in today's climate, I'd settle for tolerance.
Wednesday 31 October 2007 QUEBEC CITY: CARDINAL DEPLORES 'SPIRITUAL VOID'
The Bouchard-Taylor inquiry that is conducting itinerant public hearings on "reasonable accommodations" for cultural minorities heard testimony from the archbishop of Quebec City, Cardinal Marc Ouellet. He says Quebec is suffering from a spiritual void which is undermining the largely French-speaking province's culture and creating insecurity. Msgr. Ouellet says Quebec society had been underpinned by French culture and the Roman Catholic religion, pillars that have to be mutually supporting or will collapse together. The cardinal also criticized a decision by the provincial government to replace religion courses in schools by courses of ethics and religious culture starting in September.
Monday Oct 29, 2007 The Bouchard-Taylor commission heard from the one group on everyone's radar these days: Muslims...
Saturday 27 October 2007 In Quebec, it's `nous' vs. them
MONTREAL–The man everyone had come to see strode confidently past the cameras to take his seat in a packed room in Trois-Rivières, his boldness and self-assurance a marked contrast to the twitchiness evident when he first stepped into the media spotlight a year ago.
...But before Hérouxville Councillor André Drouin could have his say, another man stood to address the Bouchard-Taylor commission, an itinerant inquiry criss-crossing Quebec to hear from the public on "reasonable accommodations" of religious and ethnic minorities.
Bouchard, Taylor take a stand
Commissioners lose a bit of their cool, spell out what they hope to accomplish
First they gave a public platform to the controversial spokesmen of Hérouxville.
Thursday 25 October 2007 TROIS-RIVIÈRES: LOCAL POLITICIAN FEARS RIGHTS CHARTER
A town councillor from the small Quebec town of Hérouxville which helped launch a debate about accommodating minorities claims the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is a tool to destroy the country. André Drouin made the claim at the latest in a series of public hearings ordered by the provincial government to debate public accommodations for cultural minorities. One of the events leading to that decision was the town's declaration of civic duties which forbids such things as stoning to death, burning with acid and genital mutilation as contrary to Quebec values. There are no immigrants in the town located halfway between Montreal and Quebec City. Mr. Drouin told the hearing that citizens must seize control of their lives from courts, the only other solution being for the largely French-speaking province to secede.
Thursday Oct 25, 2007 Commissioner Challenges Code Authors
TROIS-RIVIERES, Que. - A two-man delegation from Herouxville, the Quebec village that provoked a provincewide debate when it adopted a code of conduct...
Wednesday 24 October 2007 Hérouxville councillor among friends at hearing
'Reasonable accommodation' commission. Man who drafted town's controversial 'code of life' basks in allies' praise but gets harsh words, too
Wednesday 24 October 2007 Wednesday 24 October 2007 Bloc bill would oblige women to unveil in order to vote
OTTAWA - Muslim women who wear niqabs or burqas could soon be required by law to remove their face-coverings...
Tuesday 23 October 2007 OTTAWA: GOVT. WARNED OF IMPLICATIONS OF IMMIGRATION DEBATE
The Globe and Mail newspaper reports that federal officials have warned the government that the debate about "reasonable accommodations" for immigrants and religious minorities taking place in Quebec could spread to the rest of the country and cause "alarming divisions." Documents show that the secretary of state for multiculturalism, Jason Kenney, requested a deputy minister to present an analysis of the situation. The official responded with a report that there's a need to define "reasonable accommodations as alarming shifts regarding the split between 'them' and 'us' may occur." Travelling hearings are being held in the past several weeks in Quebec to solicit opinions on which concessions are "reasonable," and a spectrum of opinion, some of it angry, has emerged. Earlier in the week, The Globe reported that the governing Conservative Party has created an "ethnic outreach team" that seeks to target certain categories of voter in riding to replace the Liberals as the preferred party of new Canadians and ethnic minorities.
Tuesday 23 October 2007 MONTREAL: SEPARATISTS INTERVENE IN DEBATE ABOUT MINORITIES
The provincial opposition Parti Québécois will discuss a proposal by the drafters of its next electoral platform by which all religious symbols would be removed from dress worn by public and parapublic employees of schools, hospitals day-care centre and government departments. The proponents are working on a definition of the identity of residents of the largely French-speaking province. Until now, the PQ had supported secularism in society but now would ban tursbans, kippas or hijab from official spaces. The development comes as public hearings ordered by the Liberal Party government concerning "reasonable accommodations" of minorities continues. Not all the PQ members are keen about the recommendations. The PQ Action Group of Quebecers Stemming from Emigration is worried by the direction taken by the party's new leader, Pauline Marois. One group member, Kerlande Mibel, told le Devoir newspaper that immigrants and religious minorities are Quebecers too, and it's wrong to insult them just to comfort the majority. Meanwhile, the party has introduced a bill in the legislature that would forbid immigrants who cannot speak adequate French to run for election in provincial and municipal election or for school boards
Sunday Oct 21, 2007
Pandora's box Reasonable accommodation hearings provide a forum for bigotry, groups say
In a poll, 62 per cent said the commission should have prevented racist and anti-Semitic statements.
Sunday Oct 21, 2007 PQ defends Quebec citizenship proposal
Marois Reacts; Insists plan wouldn't discriminate against immigrants
Sunday Oct 21, 2007 Religious Right Divides Its Vote at US Summit
Wednesday Oct 10, 2007 Political courage needed on accommodation
Quebecers strongly oppose almost any cultural or religious accommodation of immigrants and other minority Quebecers, according to survey findings published yesterday in La Presse. The findings are a sobering measure of the size of the problem Quebec faces and a clear indication that some political courage is going to be needed.
MONTREAL: QUEBECERS RESENT RELIGIOUS INVASION OF PUBLIC SPACE
A public opinion survey shows that almost 65 per cent of Quebecers feel that too many "reasonable accommodations" have been granted to religious and ethnic minorities. A similar poll by SOM on behalf of Le Soleil and La Presse newspaper last December put the figure at 59 per cent. Ten-and-a-half per cent felt on the other hand that not enough concessions have been offered to minorities, while 21.4 per cent thought that those conceded were sufficient. Several practices were particularly singled out for dislike, with 90 per cent saying ethnic Sikh students shouldn't have the right to wear the kirpan dagger at school or that Muslim women shouldn't be allowed to vote with their faces veiled, the same percentage disagreeing with a demand by Hassidic Jews that male candidates for a driver's licence not be examined by a woman. There was less disapproval of certain other demands and practices. Fifty-six per cent disapproved of the right of a female public employee to wear a head scarf, while 58 per cent were against the granting of premises for prayer in universities.
QUEBECERS WORRY ABOUT 'REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS'
A public opinion survey indicates that 65 per cent of Quebecers think the authorities have granted to much latitude for "reasonable accommodations" for religious and cultural minorities. In the poll carried out by the SOM firm, a majority said they opposed allowing female soccer players to wear a religious veil and RCMP officers wearing a turban. Francophones in the largely French-speaking province are twice as likely to feel that minorities have been conceded too many privileges. However, young Quebecers accept most of the "accommodations" granted, except those concerning sexual equality.
Wednesday Oct 10, 2007 Charest weighs in on women's rights vs. religious freedom
Premier Jean Charest wants to introduce an amendment to Quebec's Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms...
Wednesday 03 October 2007 RIMOUSKI: CITY OFFERS IMMIGRANTS GUIDE
The mayor of the small Quebec city of Rimouski says it wants to attract immigrants and offers them a guide to help them integrate socially and economically. Éric Forest made the revelation in remarks before Quebec's travelling hearings on "reasonable accommodations" for minorities. The mayor also testified that Rimouski has a declaration of citizens' rights which doesn't discriminate on the basis of race or religion and stresses the equality of sexes. The declaration contrasts with a controversial code of conduct for immigrants drafted by the village of Hérouxville which informed them, among other things, that it's forbidden to stone to death adulterous women. There are no immigrants in Hérouxville. That affair and several others impelled the provincial government last winter to mandate a commission to conduct hearings and to make a report on the extent to which minorities can be accommodated, particularly concerning religious practices.
Wednesday Sep 26, 2007
Quebec's debate on the reasonable accommodation of religious
and ethnic minorities is a healthy exercise that should take place
in the rest of Canada as well, Governor-General Michaëlle Jean said
yesterday. |
September 21, 2007 Howard Galganov is still an idiot
Hey, remember Howard Galganov? He’s that anglo-rights crusader who was popular back in the 90s, ran for office a bunch of times (and lost) and eventually gave up on our province and moved to Ontario.
Well, Howard doesn’t let silly provincial boundaries stop him from opining, which he does now through his website. His latest diatribe talks about the declining anglophone population in Quebec, and he blames it on what’s clearly the most logical source: the anglophone media. (Except The Suburban and CIQC.)
Wednesday 19 September 2007 SEPT-ILES: SPEAKER AT MINORITY HEARING EXPELLED
The travelling public hearings in Quebec concerning "reasonable accommodations" for minorities continued in Sept-Iles, 800 kilometres northeast of Montreal. For the first time, one of the intervenors was silenced. Commissioner Gérard Bouchard ordered Régis Simard to end his remarks on the grounds that they were offensive to Muslims. Mr. Simard had told Mr. Bouchard and his fellow Commissioner Charles Taylor that people in the province shouldn't yield to religious fundamentalism having emerged from the bondage of Roman Catholicism, adding that young Muslim girls who wear head scarves don't do so out of freedom of choice but rather to make a political statement. Mr. Bouchard responded by calling the remarks offensive in characterizing religious beliefs of immigrants as backward. The commissioner added that the intervenor has no proof that Muslims wear head scarves for political reasons.
Saturday 15 September 2007 Public venting can spew up some pretty unreasonable opinions
....Now the possibility that one veiled woman may show up at a voting booth is getting more government attention than child poverty.
...Quebec desperately needs immigrants to bolster our workforce, and if we don't make them comfortable here they will just go somewhere else - and we will find ourselves mopping our own hospital rooms.
Let's hear from the commissioners themselves as soon as possible - so we can all get back to our real lives.
Yours truly,
C.J. (Citizen Josh)
Friday 14 September 2007 ROUYN-NORANDA: FEDERAL IMMIGRATION POLICY SLATED
Quebec's travelling hearings on "reasonable accommodations' of minorities continued in the northwestern city of Rouyn-Noranda, after two days in Gatineau near Ottawa. The two commissioners heard from a founding member of the Mosaic Intercultural Association, who denounced federal immigration policy. Enrique Colombino of Argentine origin contends that immigrants are directed to cities making immigration a permanent urban phenomenon. The rector of l'Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Johanne Jean, says that the regions need a welcoming structure for newcomers, particularly to learn French. A professor of Moroccan origin, Driss Boukhissimi, suggested that it's important to ascertain whether minorities are asking concessions for obligatory or optional religious reasons before granting a "reasonable accommodation."
Thursday 13 September 2007  From Moroccan Muslims to Afro-Latino from Colombia, locals flock to have their say.
Wednesday 12 September 2007 Melting pot wins out as model for Quebec
France is a civic society, the United States a melting pot,
Canada a multicultural mosaic. Three models, three ways of looking at immigration and ethno-cultural diversity.
Which one do Quebecers feel suits their own society best?
Answer: The American-style melting pot idea, in which cultures blend together to form a new national community.
That's what almost half - 46 per cent - of 1,001 people said is best for Quebec, in a poll done for The Gazette by Léger Marketing. Another 31 per cent said multiculturalism - in which minorities keep their customs and traditions - is what Quebec should be all about. more
THE REASONABLE ACCOMODATION DEBATE REACHES OTTAWA
The
Globe and the
Post front, while La
Presse goes inside with the first day of testimony in Quebec’s
provincial commission on reasonable accommodation for minorities.
Announced by Premier Jean Charest earlier this year, the commission was
the governing Liberals’ answer to a flurry of controversies in
Quebec over how much public policy should be changed to allow minorities
to maintain their practices and beliefs. Yesterday, federal government
employees in Gatineau, Quebec, across the river from Ottawa, waded into
the debate, attacking political correctness in the federal bureaucracy.
One public servant, quoted in the Globe, described her revulsion at having
to use a sink used by a Muslim employee to wash her feet ahead of prayers;
others complained of having a Christmas party renamed a “holiday
gathering,” even though no one had complained about the Christmas
label. The
Star’s resident Quebec expert, Chantal Hebert, opines that the
reasonable accommodation debate in Quebec “has more to do with the
void left behind by the fading sovereignty-versus-federalism debate than
with the place of minorities within Quebec's public space.” Hebert
suggests the debate is simply a lingering effect from decades of
navel-gazing over Quebec’s identity. “It would not be the
first time that observers and politicians have confused the last big
chunks of a melted iceberg with the tip of a massive hidden one,”
she writes.
GATINEAU: HEARNINGS ON 'REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS' FOR MINORITIES UNDERWAY
Tuesday was the second day of the series of 17 public hearings across Quebec province about the controversial theme of "reasonable accommodations" for ethnic and religious minorities. Premier Jean Charest ordered it after a sometimes acrimonious debate on the issue last winter. The hearings will touch on "accommodation" and the place of immigrants generally. A group of 12 university professionals on Tuesday presented a brief in which they depict immigrants as a collective source of enrichment for the province. But the academics also say the rules of accommodation for newcomers should be spelled out. On Monday night, intervenors raised such questions as laicity, the place of religion in Quebec society, equality between men and women and the place of the French language spoken by Quebec's majority.
Feet washing and video games
- A federal civil servant said she's disgusted every time a Muslim
woman at work washes her feet in ...
Poll reveals myths of our tolerance
Quebecers like to think of ourselves as open-minded, tolerant
and friendly. We also see ourselves as more cultured and
cosmopolitan than the rest of Canada. As a minority, Quebecers say
we understand that minorities bring strengths and riches to a
society.
Wednesday 12 September 2007 Accommodation has its limits, panel told
GATINEAU, Que. - Quebec's travelling commission on reasonable
accommodation seemed headed for a rocky...
Deportee can stay to change religion
Declaring "everyone has the right to change religion," a
federal court judge is allowing a failed refugee...
Monday Sep 10, 2007
Taylor to sit out Co-chair of hearings on reasonable accommodation to miss first sessions Charles Taylor will not be present as hearings begin today, because of surgery to repair a broken arm...
Support for a "code of conduct" for minorities is one of the
paradoxes found in our poll about issues related to reasonable
accommodation. Part 3 in a five-day series, Identities. |
Reasonable accomodation
A provincial commission begins public consultations Monday on how Quebec should handle cultural diversity.
The so-called reasonable accommodation debate has focussed intense scrutiny on immigrants and the issue of the majority's acceptance of foreign cultures.
It began several years ago with a teenager's demand to keep his ceremonial kirpan at school.
Then the issue drew international headlines when the tiny town of Herouxville passed a resolution which symbolically banned any type of accommodation based on race, religion or culture.
Either way, it got people talking and will continue to do so at provincewide hearings over the next two months.
Video
Saturday 08 September 2007 Generation accommodation
The Léger Marketing poll, done for The Gazette in
collaboration with the Association of Canadian Studies, shows that
attitudes toward most immigrants and non-Christian minorities - and
especially of Muslims - get more negative the older a person is,
with people under 24 years of age being the most tolerant and least
fearful of change.
Bouchard-Taylor study deserves a fair chance
Quebec's commission studying "reasonable accommodation" of
minorities is running into a range of criticism as it begins the
public phase of its work. That's unfortunate. This is a project so
important that we simply cannot afford for it to be scuttled or
hijacked.
Monday 18 September 2006 Philosopher Charles Taylor first Canadian to win Templeton Prize
World-renowned philosopher Charles Taylor has become the first Canadian to win the Templeton Prize - the world's most lucrative academic honour.
Prime Minister John Howard -
Australia
Muslims
who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told on Wednesday to
get out of Australia , as the government targeted radicals in a bid
to head off potential terror attacks.
Separately,
Howard angered some Australian Muslims on Wednesday by saying he
supported spy agencies monitoring the nation's mosques. Quote:
'IMMIGRANTS, NOT AUSTRALIANS, MUST ADAPT. Take It Or Leave It. I am
tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some
individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on Bali ,
we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of
Australians.'
'This
culture has been developed over two centuries of struggles, trials
and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom'
'We
speak mainly ENGLISH, not Spanish, Lebanese, Arabic, Chinese,
Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to
become part of our society . Learn the language!'
'Most
Australians believe in God. This is not some Christian, right wing,
political push, but a fact, because Christian men and women, on
Christian principles, founded this nation, and this is clearly
documented. It is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls
of our schools. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider
another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of
our culture.'
'We
will accept your beliefs, and will not question why. All we ask is
that you accept ours, and live in harmony and peaceful enjoyment
with us.'
'This
is OUR COUNTRY, OUR LAND, and OUR LIFESTYLE, and we will allow you
every opportunity to enjoy all this. But once you are done
complaining, whining, and griping about Our Flag, Our Pledge, Our
Christian beliefs, or Our Way of Life, I highly encourage you take
advantage of one other great Australian freedom,
'THE
RIGHT TO LEAVE'.'
'If
you aren't happy here then LEAVE. We didn't force you to come here.
You asked to be here. So accept the country YOU accepted.'
|
|
Andy Nulman 
Please phone (514)934-0023 
Please e-mail us your thoughts.