News

The Role of Minorities in Canada

Published by Bianca Angel on 2010-07-07

by John E. Trent

Presented to the Annual Meeting of the Regional Association of West Quebece June 16, 2010

CANADIAN FUNDAMENTALS

Canadian history and culture can usefully be viewed through the prism of the concept of minorities. Mind you, this is a partial vision of history but it is nevertheless helpful for understanding the role of minority groups in the Outaouais in 2010. By minority I mean groups of persons differing from their surrounding majority by ethnicity, language, race, religion, nationality or opinion - and the organized associations that represent them.

Canadians learned about minorities early on: they were Europeans and natives, Catholics and Protestants, French and English. During the British colonial period there was even the majority of "Empire" versus the local Colonials. Always there were issues of protecting the rights of the minorities against the majority. For instance, the British Government tried to protect the Indians from the encroaching Europeans via the Royal Proclamation just shortly after the taking of Quebec. Then in 1774, the Quebec Act affirmed the rights of the Roman Catholics in Quebec to freedom of religion, French civil law and participation in public institutions (which was not even allowed in Great Britain at the time). The Act recognized that Canada was different and took into consideration the total political context including the need to engage the loyalty of the French Canadians in the event of unrest in the United States. This was the beginning of "minority" rights in Canada - even if French Catholics in Quebec were a majority, they were a minority within the British Empire.

The whole scene was repeated a century later after the rebellions of 1837-38 which showed close collaboration and shared beliefs between Louis-Joseph Papineau and William Lyon Mackenzie in Upper and Lower Canada. When, in 1840 the Act of Union brought together Upper and Lower Canada in one political unit, it became the turn of Robert Baldwin and Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine to join forces to struggle against the Colonial power during an entire decade to ensure not only responsible government but that French would be an official language of the Legislature. The French language rights in Parliament and the courts and the rights of denominational schools were carried over into the Constitution of Canada (the British North American Act of 1867. Thus began the tandem of English and French in Canada with provincial political units protected by federalism and linguistic and religious rights protected in the Constitution both for the Federal government and for Quebec.

At this point we should point out that it was not all clear sailing. We have a lot of lessons to learn from this short historical overview. The relations between majorities and minorities are rarely straight forward and are usually messy. There were outbreaks of anger between the French and English almost every 30 years, almost leading to the breakup of the country. The French had to continuously fight for their education and linguistic rights in every province. If you have heard the expression "acquired rights", forget it. The nature of minority rights is that they are demanded by the minority and granted by the majority. They exist in a sort of political balance when the majority recognizes it is in their best interest to offer the rights and the minority is intelligent enough not to push the superior group too far. In Quebec, the Anglophones fought in the courts for more than a decade to "trim the rough edges off Law 101" but, few challenged Francophone requirements for a language law. Rights are rarely eternal. Sometimes they are taken away, sometimes they just slip away. After Confederation, there were both French and English in the federal public service, but with the introduction of merit based exams in English in the 1920s, the bureaucracy gradually became totally dominated by the English until the French revolted in the 1960s. Since the Quiet Revolution there is a strong base of both Francophones and bilingualism in the federal government which operates on both the Quebec and Ontario sides of the Ottawa River. In short, the struggle for minority rights must always be renewed.

MINORITIES AND RIGHTS

During the last half of the 20^th century minority rights regimes gradually came to replace constitutional and legislative guarantees. There were three main developments: multiculturalism, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and Constitutional change. In the 1960s, while the French and English were self-interestedly discussing bilingualism and biculturalism together, other ethnic groups (principally the Ukrainians at the time) cried "what about us? We are Canadians and cultural groups too". Thus began the policy of multicultural rights which provided programs to help ethnic communities to protect and maintain their cultural traditions, within the context of their integration into Canadian society. The Charter of Rights was a new phenomenon in Canada. It entrenched in the Constitution French and English as the Official Languages of Canada as well as Minority Educational Rights in the provinces. It also stipulated that every individual is equal before and under the law and has the right to equal protection without discrimination based on race, ethnic or national identity, color, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability. Many of these individual rights also help to reassure people in their ethnic and racial minority groupings. Finally, in 1998, there was the very significant constitutional interpretation of the Supreme Court in the "Reference re Secession of Quebec". It stipulated that the principles animating the Canadian Constitution, writ large, are the principles of federalism, democracy, constitutionalism and the rule of law, and respect for minorities. We can see that from its humble beginnings, respect for minorities has now become one of the defining institutions of Canadian society. Often today we hear it referred to as the Canadian respect for differentiation. We should not take it lightly.

EXPERIENCE OF REGIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WEST QUEBECERS

English-speaking Quebecers always thought they were an equal and integral part of Quebec society. It was only after the win of the Parti Québécois in 1976 and during the Referendum battle of 1981 that Anglos awoke to the new reality that they were now a linguistic minority. Never having organized as an ethnic group before (that was for others), it was quite a wrenching experience to redefine thier identity as a minority and to realize they required an organized capacity not only to defend their link to Canada but also their cultural identity within Quebec. It was quite a struggle to mobilize people to create CU-RE, the English Community Resource Centre in 1981 and Outaouais Alliance in 1983, which changed its name to the Regional Association of West Quebecers in the 1990s. But by the early 1980s the Philomen Wright Days were attracting upwards of 2,000 people to an annual regional cultural fair.

The delicate balancing act of the Anglophones in the Outaouais was summarized in the motto adopted by Alliance Outaouais: "A healthy English-speaking community in a secure French-speaking Quebec. A strong Quebec in a united Canada". This motto recognizes the Association's dual struggles for a federal Canada and the English culture within the Outaouais. It equally recognizes that this struggle must be waged within the context of respect for the dominant French culture in Quebec. The notion of a "healthy community" also underlines the fact that concerns for a united Canada will not always be front and centre, so RAWQ's continuing mission is to be a community association, first and foremost. Further, from the beginning, the organizers of the Alliance Quebec network had recognized that the issue was not so much one of survival in an obviously English North America, but of a respect for minority rights throughout Canada. It was thought that if English rights in Quebec were brought down to the lowest common denominator, it would not be long before French rights in the rest of Canada were abandoned and the country was doomed. As the Supreme Court has now recognized, respect for minority rights is a linchpin of the country. Even so, there is a certain irony in the concept of minorities within minorities which is attested to by the vibrancy of "Impératif français" the association founded to protect and promote the dominance of French in the Outaouais - a region that was, of course, founded by English-speaking Americans and Irish.

My intention here is to stress the continuing broad mandate of the Regional Association of West Quebecers. It can be seen best in RAWQ's Mission Statement (2006-2010) and its historical achievements. Let me first just summarize the highlights of the more formal mission statement:

Identify health, social, educational and cultural needs;
Secure improved access to English services and information and instruction in French;
Support cultural and artistic activity;
Give youth a strong voice;
Nurture relations with Francophones;
Serve as an information and resource centre;
Encourage English-speaking participation in the region;
Cooperate with official-language rights groups;
Advocate English-speaking interests to political authorities.

It has long been concluded that all these elements hang together. Education and health are obviously crucial. Culture is what brings a community together. Youth are the future. Goals and interests cannot be achieved unless there are relatively good relations with Francophones.

And so it has been with RAWQ's numerous achievements. At the Philomen Wright Days, breakfast was served to the 2,000 Anglophones by the Francophone Members of the National Assembly while the French media provided information sessions. The association regularly hosts all-candidates sessions at elections to stay close to the politicians. In business, the Wakefield Steam Train would not be there if AQ had not sponsored it. RAWQ also publishes an online business directory. In education, our Association supported the founding of Heritage CEGEP during many years of struggle. Since 2005 there has been great success in health and social services, first with the founding of a network and now with the creation of ConneXions, an information and referral centre. With other partners RAWQ promoted French instruction to retain our nurses in the Outaouais. RAWQ sponsored a workshop on the development of Community Theatre for Wakefield, Pontiac, and Aylmer and was there at the founding of the highly successful ACT Company, for Aylmer Community Theatre. It has supported the Francophone minority in Russell Township in Ontario against the attacks of Galganov and also held hands with Shawville during its transfer to bilingual signage. RAWQ has campaigned for broader English services in Gatineau and better funding for our schools. As a source of information, it not only has its staff and Board but also a newsletter, a Web site, an eBulletin and a Community Services Directory. The training of its staff has been an investment in our community. For years, new Anglophone families immigrating to the Outaouais have been welcomed by RAWQ's New Residents Program. And to cap it all, since 2005 the association has sponsored the Annual Awards Banquet to honor our community heroes.

It is hard to think of a community or sector that has not been touched by the helpful hand of West Quebecers. It is a true community association. Wise too. As a good parent, it is there to assure its offspring take flight. Then it moves on to other challenges. But also like a good parent, its contributions are often forgotten thereafter.

THE FUTURE OF MINORITIES IN THE OUTAOUAIS

So what is the future of the Regional Association of West Quebecers? It is having a difficult time recruiting new members and attracting directors for its Board. It is not well known. It is struck by the old circular trauma: the fewer active Board members you have the less you can do; the less you do the less you get support. To get a broader perspective on the situation, Rick Henderson and I visited the Commissioner of Official Languages, Graham Fraser. He confirmed that RAWQ is not alone in its misery. Associations across the country are suffering form burnout of staff, stagnant funding, increasing demands for accountability, an aging population, disinterest of youth, competition from multiculturalism, and an aversion of the Harper government to advocacy from the federally funded. Nevertheless, Mr. Fraser maintains that our regional associations are absolutely crucial to the life of official language minority communities. They are an organized reflection of community vitality. RAWQ is a connection point for the Anglophone Outaouais, a living bulletin board.

Still we must ask if the existence of RAWQ is realistic or anachronistic. Would it make any difference if it disappeared? In the short term, probably not. Other associations and regional politicians would continue with community leadership. But in the longer term, surely this view is not realistic. No other organization is there with the potential to make connections. No one else will be there to represent us when the Parti Québécois once again becomes the government of Quebec. No other association has the broad mandate to look after the future of our community. No one else provides the information or represents Anglophone interests to government and the French majority. With its funding and staff, RAWQ is an enviable resource.

What to do? What are the key criteria for RAWQ's on-going viability? First of all, the Association must have continuing, little victories. It must make visible contributions. This year we had a big one with the announcement of ConneXions, the first English health resource centre for our 54,000 population. But there was no representative of RAWQ in the picture. The Association should remind its friends and allies of its existence in good times as well as bad. RAWQ should think about sponsoring a regular major event like the Townshippers have. We should think of one major contribution we could make to the Outaouais as a whole. We should think of ways in which we can help Francophones, as in the current debate over bilingual judges on the Supreme Court. Most of all, our community desperately needs a Handbook on Linguistic and Cultural Rights under the federal and Quebec linguistic regimes. The QCGN and the Commissioner of Official Languages could probably help RAWQ to produce such a precious guidebook within a year.

But to achieve an agenda, we need active Board members. Getting Board members is, I believe a responsibility of the organized Anglophone community. If RAWQ is responsible to the community then the community should be responsible for RAWQ. I want to be quite specific. It is the duty of all the Anglophone Members of the National Assembly (MNAs), mayors and councillors of the region, all the presidents of associations, the ministers and parish organizations of the churches, hospitals and medical and social service personnel, schools and school boards, Heritage College, student associations, the politically mobilized, business associations, sports groups, presidents of clubs, and cultural and artistic groups to make nominations to the RAWQ Board of Directors each year. They should think about whom among their personnel and volunteers have the experience and a little time to invest in a fascinating opportunity.

In closing, let me turn to our Ontario neighbours for a good example of minorities in action. When Montfort Hospital, the only French hospital outside Quebec, was threatened with closure in 1997, the whole Franco-Ontarian community rallied to its rescue. Last week was the inauguration of the New Montfort. It is double in size and now also includes the health centre for National Defense in the region. At the opening, the Prime Minister of Ontario, Dalton McGuinty, congratulated the personnel of the hospital and all the Franco-Ontarian community. He said and I quote, "Thank you for never quitting". In her speech, the leader of SOS Montfort, Gisèle Lalonde, reminded Franco-Ontarians that, "Despite our success, we can never lower our arms because what we think has been acquired can slip through our fingers if we do not remain vigilant."