Quote:
Originally Posted by MonctonRad
To Acajack, an anglophone resident in Quebec is free to call himself a Quebecker, but will never be considered Quebecois unless he/she makes sincere efforts to inculcate him/herself to the majority. Being a Quebecois is a state of mind. Even being able to speak decent French is not enough to make yourself Quebecois. You have to buy into the culture and mindset in order to join the club.
To use an Atlantic Canadian analogy - you will remain a "come from away." I used to half jokingly say that an immigrant to PEI would remain a CFA until the seventh generation. I don't think this is so much the case now as it used to be, but in the old days, a lot of value used to be placed on ones physical connections to the Island, and to the Island's traditions and heritage. This isn't to say that one couldn't eventually become an "Islander." For example there is a large Lebanese community on PEI. They've been there for well over 100 years. There have been Lebanese-Canadians who have been Mayor of Charlottetown and Premier(s) of PEI. They have been adopted by the Island community and are considered one of "us".
So, this isn't just a Quebec problem. A lot of insular societies have similar world views. Just as Islanders have adopted their Lebanese community, so have the Quebecois with (selected) anglophones. The adoption process in Quebec however is highly selective, and I doubt that more than 1-3% of anglo-Quebeckers are also considered Quebecois.
How about it Acajack? What percentage of Quebeckers do you think are also considered Quebecois???
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Well, 99% of Anglo-Quebecers aren't public figures like the ones I rattled off.
In terms of being considered Québécois by their immediate entourage? It's certainly much higher than 1-3%.
I have people I know who have English names like Jill Smith who speak unaccented French. It's hard to tell if they're actually anglophones (even if bilingual) or if they're simply francophones with an anglo name.
Human identities can be quite fluid and not necessarily clear-cut.
I think Begratto or GreaterMontréal once mentioned that one's accent in French was a major determinant. I think that that's what people would use if you pressed them with a question. Though there are many exceptions of course to the accent rule, and if someone is well integrated but with an accent, they'll be considered Québécois as well. Note that someone originally from France but with a Parisian accent might not be considered Québécois either, whereas Mike Bossy who speaks fluent Québécois hockey rink French with an anglo accent and makes the occasional mistake, is considered Québécois by everyone.
And there isn't really a "political mindset" threshold to be met either. I have no idea of what Mike Bossy's political views are on independence, Bill 21, the future of the French language. And neither does anyone else.
Mike Bossy and Georges Laraque are considered Québécois because they sound like Québécois and act like Québécois.
You know one when you "see" (sic) one.
Good post BTW.