The Separatist Question

Since I'm now living in la Belle Province, I figured I should continue my trend of inflammatory comments by addressing the Separatist movement in Quebec. To be honest, I hadn't really paid any attention to it or its proponents before the summer of 2004 when I first went off to the French Immersion program at L'école de langue française de Trois-Pistoles. For those unfamiliar with le petit village, Trois-Pistoles is located between the "thriving metropolises" of Rivière du Loup and Rimouski. It's been running a language exchange school for the past 74 years wherein students from across Canada are welcomed by local families for a 5 week period of class instruction, cultural activities and general merriment. The program is affiliated with the University of Western Ontario, and runs 2 sessions : spring and summer.

Part of what makes the exchange so interesting is that, whether the students realise it or not (and most don't until about Week 3), the staff, les animateurs et même les familles d'accueil sont des séparatistes. For me, this was a major, major blow. It felt almost like a violation of trust. These people had welcomed me into their home, were eager to teach me their language (la langue de mes ancêtres), yet, all things being equal, would rather not be a part of our country! This led me into many debates avec mon animateur, Fred, none of which actually solved anything. He still believes very strongly that the only way for Québec to survive is to control its own destiny as a sovereign country. I disagree.

So let's take a look at some of the highlights of my discussions with Fred. According to Fred, Quebec is already a nation in the sense of a group of people who share the same language and belief structure. Absolutely true. Heck, if those pinhead commentators on TSN can refer to the Leafs Nation all the time, then let's call the Quebecois exactly what they are: a nation. He wants to protect his language and culture and believes that Quebec is fully capable of being its own country. Perhaps it is. But here's where it gets a bit sticky for me: what are they trying to protect? What are they so afraid of?

In a word: me. Well, not necessarily me, per se, but rather what my family represents. Y'see, contrary to popular belief here in Quebec, my family traces its origins back to the original colonies. My branch of the family relocated to Ontario and subsequently lost its French roots about 80-100 years ago. I'm a walking example of what could happen to them if they don't take a more firm control over their own business. Pretty scary stuff if you think about it. A significant part of my heritage was wiped away because we weren't strong enough to guard it. This is what they fear.

They recognize that they're a mere 6 million or so within the borders of Quebec, surrounded in a sea of 300 million anglophones. All their history and their culture is threatened by this. The only alternative they see now is a true country of their very own. They don't feel welcome in the rest of Canada. They recognize that bilingualism is a joke outside of politics. They feel like second-class citizens in a country they've helped build. All these are valid points. I empathize. I've had a difficult time, myself, trying to reclaim my ability to speak French. Perhaps if I live here long enough I'll get it down. But I still don't think that leaving Canada is the right answer.

I told Fred, during one of our last discussions, that he needed to define what he was trying to protect. Is it the rural culture of villages like Trois-Pistoles? Or is it the metropolitan cultures of Montreal, Quebec City or Trois-Rivières? Because if the separatists want to protect the culture of the villages, then sadly, the battle has already been lost. The youth of Quebec are infatuated with American music, movies, styles... much as the rest of the world seems to be. They see no opportunity to live out their dreams in small towns like Trois-Pistoles. In their eyes, the only way to make a life for themselves is to move to the big cities. Fred, himself, lives in Montreal. To my surprise, he conceded that point.

So I asked the question again: are you trying to protect the culture of Montreal, Quebec City and Trois-Rivières? Because let's face facts here-- it's not in ANY danger of going anywhere. These cities are unlike any others in Canada. And it comes from the collective spirit of the people here. There are so many things that English Canadians miss out on because they haven't taken the time to explore the language, the history or the culture here. But rest assured, the culture is alive and well. One need just walk down Rue St-Denis to see what I'm talking about.

So if we've eliminated the whole "cultural protection" argument, then what's left? The language issue. Part of what defines a culture is its language-- the way the people express themselves. Fred noted that it's pretty much mandatory for Quebecois to learn to speak English if they want to have any sort of future. This leads to an anglicizing of the language and gradual assimilation into the anglophone world. Interesting perspective.

I believe this gradual assimilation has more to do with the Americans than anything else. They're such an overpowering economic force that you either learn to play by their rules or suffer the consequences. Most of Quebec's trade is with the US. Heck, a good chunk of their tourism industry is supported by vacationing Americans. So that being the case, English will still be a vital part of the education of any Quebecois, whether they remain a part of Canada or not. So why leave?

Fred also points to the declining number of francophones in the population. In my opinion, this has more to do with Quebecois women being fed up with the thankless job of being baby factories. Hundreds of years of producing 15 offspring is bound to be wear on them. The women want more from their lives, so we see the pendulum swing the other way. Now you'll be lucky to find a québécoise who wants more than even one child. The end result is the significant decline of this ethnic group within the next couple of generations. After all, if they don't have at least 2, then they don't even maintain the current population, let alone increase it. All immigration will do is further decrease the percentage of remaining Quebecois in the province, despite safeguarding the language. So they still lose. The francophone entity of Quebec may remain, but the Quebecois culture disappears. Immigrants won't necessarily feel any sort of affinity to the old traditional songs or the history. So again, I ask: Why leave?

I really don't have the answers any more than the next person. But I know it'll take a significant effort on the part of both English and French Canada to make anything work. If we truly want to build a Canada we can be proud of, then anglophones are going to have to open their collective minds to Quebec. I'm not saying that we should hand over any veto powers or give special privileges to francophones, but I do believe we should continue to educate our children in both languages and encourage exchanges and immersion programs like the one in Trois-Pistoles. Understanding can only be reached through dialogue, education and experience. So let's give it a shot. The only thing we really have to lose is... well... our country.