Quebec, the French Language, and Quebecois Identity

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Dengler Avenue

The teachers are probably like, “Câline pourquoi on t’envoye à l’école francophone”…

In mixed marriages, the feeling is that children would have an enhanced educational experience learning the French language by going to French school rather than French immersion in the English school system, and I am sure they are correct. The French test scores of most immersion students in the province are not really very good.

In a province like NB, the best jobs, especially in health care and the civil service are reserved for the most fluently bilingual. These parents are just trying to give their kids a leg up.

[Loco101]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

Assumptions, assumptions...

Ontario allows raw logs and ore to be moved out of the province for processing as long as its within Canada. Quebec does not allow the removal of those things for processing outside Quebec.

If Quebecers voted for sovereignty then a number of their sawmills and mineral processing sites would be shut down.

[Loco101]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

As for the parents, these are usually mixed marriages, with one anglophone parent and one francophone parent. The French only policy of the francophone school board means that only one parent will be interacted with. What if this parent is unavailable for a parent teacher meeting. It means the teacher will not speak to the other parent. Is this appropriate?

It’s not a matter of entitlement......

In Timmins I know of a number of people including my nieces who go to a French-language school and the teachers have always interacted with the parent(s) in English with no issue. I wouldn't expect it in Quebec or very heavily francophone parts of New Brunswick (such as Edmundston) where it's the or an official language. Here the French language schools(and I mean French and not French-immersion) understand that parents and the students' home life is often mainly or just in English and nobody should be punished for it.

[Loco101]

Originally Posted by harls

Good luck getting a bilingual kid to speak anything but your native language to you. My kids won't speak French to me because 'c'est trop bizarre'.

I mean, we can do it.. but it feels like we are putting on a play or something.

That's like with me and my many francophone friends and family members.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by vanatox

I don't understand anglophone parents that would enrolled their kids in francophone school and would expect that their kids can make everyone they interact with (staff, other kids) switch to English to accommodate them. I also don't understand that these same parents expect that the school would operate in English specifically for them.. what an exaggerated sense of entitlement.

Does that scenario exist?

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by Loco101

Ontario allows raw logs and ore to be moved out of the province for processing as long as its within Canada. Quebec does not allow the removal of those things for processing outside Quebec.

If Quebecers voted for sovereignty then a number of their sawmills and mineral processing sites would be shut down.

Again, an assumption.

[kwoldtimer]

Originally Posted by Loco101

That's like with me and my many francophone friends and family members.

In my family, it's a resistance to speak French with me by the kids in French immersion. They can do it, they just refuse to.

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by kwoldtimer

Does that scenario exist?

Not really. It is a red herring. But what do I know, I only grew up in Quebec.

[harls]

Originally Posted by Loco101

That's like with me and my many francophone friends and family members.

I get grilled by my kids going through the drive thru at McDonald's. 'Jesus, dad.. just speak English.'

Meanwhile I live in Quebec and I try to do all my daily interactions in French out of courtesy. Lousy ingrate pseudo-quebecker kids.

[Dengler Avenue]

Originally Posted by harls

I get grilled by my kids going through the drive thru at McDonald's. 'Jesus, dad.. just speak English.'

Meanwhile I live in Quebec and I try to do all my daily interactions in French out of courtesy. Lousy ingrate pseudo-quebecker kids.

Maybe it’s time take them to Abitibi-Témiscamingue for a visit.
“No English until we cross into Ontario.”

[harls]

I know the world we live in, and I guess me being a squarehead from the ROC plays a part.. but I secretly wish they'd care more about things like the dude from les Cowboys Fringants dying. They don't even know who he is, and somehow I feel that I have failed them.

[thebasketballgeek]

Originally Posted by harls

I know the world we live in, and I guess me being a squarehead from the ROC plays a part.. but I secretly wish they'd care more about things like the dude from les Cowboys Fringants dying. They don't even know who he is, and somehow I feel that I have failed them.

On the topic of music, the most bizarre thing I found out is all the kids and young adults seem to listen primarily and in some cases only to English music. Mind you I’m in the heart of Francophone country where everything else in their life is conducted in French. In fact I’m the only anglophone living in my my town 15 minutes from Rimouski lol.

Yet whenever I hear songs played in the gym or at the bar it will be 90-95% English music with the occasional French or Spanish song. I don’t even know what the popular Québécois bands are even though I’ve lived here for 3 months because I never hear them played in public

[Acajack]

You guys have just inadvertently given a bunch of examples of why stuff like Bill 101 exists and will continue to exist.

These anglicizing trends are present in other places in the world but due to our unique situation the impact and existential threat for us is far greater.

[ToxiK]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

I fully expect that the rate at which anglophone rights are lost will only accelerate as they lose demographic importance.

At what rate are they losing rights now precisely?

[ToxiK]

Originally Posted by Ozabald

I was under the impression English language schooling in Quebec is only available to Quebec/Canadian students where at least one parent was educated in English. Quebec francophone parents do not have the right to send their children to the English system and immigrants (unless exempted such as ICAO diplomats) have to send their kids to the French system; even if they immigrate from the Anglosphere such as the US, UK, Australia, etc.

If they come from the Anglosphere outside of Canada (or anywhere else for that matter) and they chose to settle in Québec, they should expect to integrate into a francophone society. If they want to come to Canada and integrate into an anglophone society, they have 9 other provinces and 3 territories to chose from.

[Dengler Avenue]

Originally Posted by thebasketballgeek

On the topic of music, the most bizarre thing I found out is all the kids and young adults seem to listen primarily and in some cases only to English music. Mind you I’m in the heart of Francophone country where everything else in their life is conducted in French. In fact I’m the only anglophone living in my my town 15 minutes from Rimouski lol.

Yet whenever I hear songs played in the gym or at the bar it will be 90-95% English music with the occasional French or Spanish song. I don’t even know what the popular Québécois bands are even though I’ve lived here for 3 months because I never hear them played in public

I just noticed your location. What brought you to Bas Saint Laurent / Gaspésie?

[harls]

Originally Posted by thebasketballgeek

On the topic of music, the most bizarre thing I found out is all the kids and young adults seem to listen primarily and in some cases only to English music. Mind you I’m in the heart of Francophone country where everything else in their life is conducted in French. In fact I’m the only anglophone living in my my town 15 minutes from Rimouski lol.

Yet whenever I hear songs played in the gym or at the bar it will be 90-95% English music with the occasional French or Spanish song. I don’t even know what the popular Québécois bands are even though I’ve lived here for 3 months because I never hear them played in public

One of my kid's friends has parents from La Tuque and Quebec City, and I bet you he listens to top 40 Ottawa radio more than a Quebec station (and even then, the Quebec radio station plays the same music..)

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by harls

I know the world we live in, and I guess me being a squarehead from the ROC plays a part.. but I secretly wish they'd care more about things like the dude from les Cowboys Fringants dying. They don't even know who he is, and somehow I feel that I have failed them.

My children had a blank face when I mentioned that Gordon Lightfoot had died. My daughter asked, with a deadpan voice, if something was wrong with his foot.

meanwhile, I could care less if Taylor Swift kicked the bucket...

[harls]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

My children had a blank face when I mentioned that Gordon Lightfoot had died. My daughter asked, with a deadpan voice, if something was wrong with his foot.

meanwhile, I could care less if Taylor Swift kicked the bucket...

It is sad as hell. My youngest actually got into Radiohead lately, so I have a bit of hope..

[YOWetal]

Originally Posted by ToxiK

If they come from the Anglosphere outside of Canada (or anywhere else for that matter) and they chose to settle in Québec, they should expect to integrate into a francophone society. If they want to come to Canada and integrate into an anglophone society, they have 9 other provinces and 3 territories to chose from.

Montreal is a bilingual city. People from France move to Ottawa or even Toronto. Yes they expect to have to use English but the ability to do some things and educate their kids in French is a nice bonus. But what they 'should" or shouldn't do is irrelevant you are right they should know what they signed up for which is why it's harder to attract IT talent for example to Montreal. The Anglos from rest of Canada move for many reasons. Some to run airlines and don't learn a lick of French.