Facts and Language Laws – long version
This is a longer version of a column that was published in the New Brunswick Telegraph Journal June 9, 2023.
Facts are often overlooked when discussing official languages.
The English language is not under threat in New Brunswick or anywhere else in Canada. Apart from aboriginal languages, the language that is actually vulnerable in Canada is French. Look at the data.
New Brunswickers and Canadians support bilingualism. Again, look at the data.
Despite 50 years of official language laws, francophone citizens still do not have equality when exercising their constitutional language rights. Generally, this is due to the inadequacy of the laws and timid application of laws from fear of the feared anti-Francophone backlash. (Not a fact but knowledge based opinion, currently in New Brunswick, the inadequacy of language laws and their non-application is not so much due to fear of backlash but because the premier is the backlash, the grand marshal of the backlash parade.)
Another fact to keep in mind is that, when discussing language laws in Canada, 11 out of 10 anglophones will want to discuss anglophones in Québec, as if they didn’t know that Québec’s minority language group still has it better than the minority language group in the other eight unilingual provinces. Which further shows how little progress has been made towards a respectful bilingualism.
Both the federal and provincial governments are updating their language laws. Last month, the House of Commons adopted the federal revisions by a vote of 301 to 1, and it will likely pass in the Senate this month.
New Brunswick’s “revised” language law – years overdue – has yet to be adopted due to our Premier’s problem with bilingualism. Only Blaine will be congratulating Higgs over it, but he’s used to doing that.
But do please give a thought to the three francophone conservative MLAs who, earlier this spring went to the stake for Higgs, erasing all doubt about their allegiances, and said things they likely hope that history books didn’t record – “we think removing that section from the language law is a very good thing for francophones”. Now, Higgs has changed his mind and that section is staying… « er, thanks, boys, but I don’t need that hill you died on. » Way to squander your puny political capital with francophones, boys.
The federal government did what New Brunswick chose not to do: it improved its language law. The new federal law adds consequences for federally regulated entities that fail to respect language rights. It also creates a right to work and to receive services in French in regions with a strong francophone presence.
The federal government and Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor should consider well the following before launching the announced consultations on which regions in the province will be designated as having sufficient “francophone presence”.
A long time ago, New Brunswick chose not to base language rights on numbers or on regions. Our rights are citizen-based. We carry our rights wherever we go in New Brunswick. It’s in the Constitution. Which is why the Supreme Court ruled the RCMP must respect language rights everywhere in New Brunswick, not just “where numbers warrant”.
FYI.
Mon doux 