Bilinguisme obligatoire dans Alberta ? NON! (Forced Bilingualism in Alberta? NO!)
It had to happen. We knew it was just a matter of time. For years, Albertans have been waiting for the other shoe to drop, and now we are reeling from the thud. It is amazing that it didn't happen sooner, to be honest.
In a case that just might end up in Canada's Supreme Court, a man who describes himself as an 'Alberta Francophone' is challenging a simple traffic ticket - because his request to have the ticket translated into French was denied. Gilles Caron, a truck driver from Edmonton, then attempted to have his subsequent trial in French which was also denied. Now, Caron has decided to turn a traffic ticket - make that, a three-year-old $54 traffic ticket - into a language issue. He has hired a lawyer with the intent of 'justice', but who does he think he is kidding?
This is nothing more than a blatant attempt to make Alberta fall in line with the East's perception of Canada. If successful, this trial could have implications from coast to coast, and essentially place the doctrine of bilingualism ahead of individual provincial rights. Alberta has a specific law that states that courts are not required to conduct proceedings entirely in French. As well, since a French language interpreter is available for any provincial trial, what is the problem?
Let me make it clear that I accept the fact that Canadians have the choice of two languages to speak. My own children are in a French immersion school, and are learning both English and French, so my opinion is as unbiased as I can give. Gilles Caron, and every other so-called 'Alberta Francophone' should show the decency and consideration to learn the common language of the province. Wouldn't an 'Alberta anglophone' be expected to learn and speak French if he were to choose to live in a Quebec city for any length of time? Why the double standard?
Gilles Caron understands English perfectly. He has given enough English language interviews to prove that. Caron (and his soon to be famous lawyer) has only one purpose: to make Alberta businesses and all levels of government in the province spend lots of money, switching tickets and bills and notices and street signs and maps and telephone books into two languages. Alberta's distinct character is at risk because of a mettlesome leftwinger who has sought publicity by trying to shove his culture down our throats. I, for one, say enough is enough. Not in my province. Not in Alberta.
The solution to Mr. Caron's issue is simple: either he accepts that we are an English province and learns to assimilate, or he is more than welcome to jump on an Eastern-bound bus where he would no doubt be more comfortable. I understand they speak his language out there.
In a case that just might end up in Canada's Supreme Court, a man who describes himself as an 'Alberta Francophone' is challenging a simple traffic ticket - because his request to have the ticket translated into French was denied. Gilles Caron, a truck driver from Edmonton, then attempted to have his subsequent trial in French which was also denied. Now, Caron has decided to turn a traffic ticket - make that, a three-year-old $54 traffic ticket - into a language issue. He has hired a lawyer with the intent of 'justice', but who does he think he is kidding?
This is nothing more than a blatant attempt to make Alberta fall in line with the East's perception of Canada. If successful, this trial could have implications from coast to coast, and essentially place the doctrine of bilingualism ahead of individual provincial rights. Alberta has a specific law that states that courts are not required to conduct proceedings entirely in French. As well, since a French language interpreter is available for any provincial trial, what is the problem?
Let me make it clear that I accept the fact that Canadians have the choice of two languages to speak. My own children are in a French immersion school, and are learning both English and French, so my opinion is as unbiased as I can give. Gilles Caron, and every other so-called 'Alberta Francophone' should show the decency and consideration to learn the common language of the province. Wouldn't an 'Alberta anglophone' be expected to learn and speak French if he were to choose to live in a Quebec city for any length of time? Why the double standard?
Gilles Caron understands English perfectly. He has given enough English language interviews to prove that. Caron (and his soon to be famous lawyer) has only one purpose: to make Alberta businesses and all levels of government in the province spend lots of money, switching tickets and bills and notices and street signs and maps and telephone books into two languages. Alberta's distinct character is at risk because of a mettlesome leftwinger who has sought publicity by trying to shove his culture down our throats. I, for one, say enough is enough. Not in my province. Not in Alberta.
The solution to Mr. Caron's issue is simple: either he accepts that we are an English province and learns to assimilate, or he is more than welcome to jump on an Eastern-bound bus where he would no doubt be more comfortable. I understand they speak his language out there.
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posted by Leigh Patrick Sullivan at 8:35 PM
10 Comments:
Great post, Leigh. Alberta should be able to assert that it is an anglophone province; setting aside arguments about culture, it simply makes economical sense.
I thought the official second language of Alberta was Ukranian... I could live with a guy demanding his ticket be translated into Ukranian, but French. Fuck that.
THis is where the demand for services in any language is a complete farce. Alberta has to stand up and not let this happen.
What about all the German people here in Alberta? I want my dealing with the system in my old traditional Irish language of Gaelic. Ain't going to happen is it!!!!! Neither should the French request. As stated, use the translator system already in place.
I am sick of these whining French.
One of the goals of the Bilingualism of Trudeau (yes, I know you all hate him out there) was to provide Government services to Canadians of French and English heritage in the language of their choice. Is this a frivolous lawsuit? Yes. But is it within his rights to demand such service from his provincial government? Also, yes.
Whether you care to acknowledge it or not, there is a Franco-Albertan community and they have the right to service from their government in their first language.
al b here- call it what you want, but I don't agree with social engineering. That, as much as anything is WHY we have a long-standing hatred of PET. Besides, an interpreter is available at all times. Isn't that acceptable?
This wasn't about the trial, this is one activists attempt at making a statement.
Two languages? If French, not Alberta's official language, becomes required under this ruling, so will our other non-official languages, of which French takes a far far back seat to.
(I wonder if at any point he was offered to have the ticket wiped clean for dropping that case. I'd totally do that to get out of a ticket).
While I can appreciate that an interpreter is available at all times in the court, the quality of said interpreter may be lacking. Besides, shouldn't the defendant have the opportunity to read the details of the offense (or even how to pay the ticket) in their first language? I'm pretty sharp in French, myself, but I'm hesitant to sign any contracts or agreements written entirely in French.
One of the more misinterpreted aspects of Trudea's stance on bilingualism was the idea that he wanted everyone in Canada to be bilingual. He didn't. He wanted the poor francophone in Rimouski to be able to communicate with the Federal government and be understood.
The multiculturalism policy reflected the understanding that Canada was founded by 3 distinct cultural groups: the English (the conquerers), the French and the Aboriginal peoples (the conquered). But that has to do with the Federal government, not the provincial. Thinking that any ruling over a traffic ticket would impact Alberta businesses is a bit extreme, however it's not unreasonable for a citizen of Canada to believe that (s)he could receive service from their government in their first language, in particular when it's the language of one of the founding groups of the country.
As for assimilating into an English province, the Multiculturalism Act of 1988 was put in place by the Conservative government under Brian Mulroney, with the goal (amongst other things)to encourage and assist the social, cultural, economic and political institutions of Canada to be respectful and inclusive of Canada's multicultural character and to ensure that all individuals receive equal treatment and equal protection under the law, while respecting and valuing their diversity. Sounds to me like the guy has a case. As I said, it's frivolous, but it's a case nonetheless.
You mean, the same Mulroney government that pandered to Quebec? The same Mulroney government that cause Alberta to realize that, no matter the party in power, the great social engineering of Canada would continue? That same gov't whose actions of neglect of the West led to the formation of the Reform movement?
Understand that I do respect your opinion, but in this case, I tend to see this gentleman's motives as nothing more than trying to force his culture on us - which is a bigger subject, namely the fact that Canada is too vast with too small of a population to have one general culture. We never have, and we never will. Just imagine if an english-speaking person were to attempt the same stunt in a small northern Quebec town. The leftwing media would be all over it in a not-so-supportive way.
Alberta has is it's own 'distinct-society', just as much as Quebec does. Simply put: confederation (ie. one common Canadian culture) has never exsisted, and if most Albertans have their way, it never will. And rightfully so. No wonder I've never belived in the fairy tale of federalism.
I've had my fair share of debates with Quebecois separatists (including a face-to-face interview with Bernard Landry of the Parti Quebecois) and I've made that very same argument, namely that Quebec is no more distinct than Newfoundland, with the exception of the language. I invoked the name of Mulroney primarily because he was a Conservative Prime Minister and to point out that Trudeau wasn't the source of all the multicultural rhetoric.
Given that I'm not an Albertan, this sort of issue doesn't hit as close to home for me. I can't recall offhand whether traffic tickets in Ontario are bilingual since I've only ever gotten one in my lifetime, but I do believe that the government is supposed to serve the people. I went to university with a Franco-Albertan and, if memory serves me, she came from Northern Alberta so it wouldn't surprise me if there was a reasonable size community there. I would hope that there would be bilingual services for these communities if the numbers indeed warrant it.
Remember, as much as this is your Alberta, it's also his. His family could hypothetically have been there for 100 years. He shouldn't be made to feel like a guest or an outsider in his own province and country. I freely admit that some of these language issues get a bit ridiculous, but living in Quebec for the past year I've seen how deeply people worry about the survival of their language and culture here.
My own family lost its ability to speak french when Ontario put in place a handful of restrictive laws around 1910 or so and, given that I'm an 11th generation Canadian, I personally feel I've lost a significant part of my personal heritage. Caron is most certainly over-reacting, but I also don't think this whole episode will have much fallout at all.
It should also be noted that his trial is being run entirely in French.
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