|
Bill 101, Charte de la langue française (1977), marked the culmination of a debate that had produced BILL 63 (1969) and BILL 22 (1974). It made French the official language of the state and of the courts in the province of Québec, as well as making it the normal and habitual language of the workplace, of instruction, of communications, of commerce and of business. Education in French became compulsory for immigrants, even those from other Canadian provinces, unless a "reciprocal agreement" existed between Québec and that province (the so-called Québec clause).
For the PARTI QUÉBÉCOIS government a new language law was a high priority. After publishing a White Paper on the subject (1977), it introduced Bill 1, which was strongly supported by nationalist and union groups among others, and was just as sharply opposed by management circles and the province's anglophone population. The bill was withdrawn because of pressure from the Liberal opposition and reappeared as Bill 101. Thereafter, this language legislation was significantly modified following a series of court rulings that changed its content and reduced its scope. In 1980 the Supreme Court of Canada supported a judgement of the Québec Superior Court that struck down the section of the Charte which declared French the language of the legislature and courts. In 1984 it was ruled that the CANADIAN CHARTER OF RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS (article 23) limited the bill's power to regulate the language of instruction (see BILL 101 CASE); parents whose children had been instructed in English-language elementary schools elsewhere in Canada were granted the right to have them instructed in English in Québec (so was made void the Québec clause). In the same year, the Court ruled that the compulsory exclusive use of French on public commercial signs was contrary to the freedom of speech right. The Bourassa government then introduced BILL 178. This series of judgements caused dissatisfaction in nationalist groups and some relief among anglophones. As expected, such challenges to Bill 101 were not met with indifference by the Parti Québécois. In the years following the 1995 Québec referendum, however, the party leadership succeeded in blunting the most radical of nationalist views regarding Québec's language policies.
Author
R. HUDON
|
|
|
|
 |
|
| On Monday August 29, 1864 half the cabinet of the Canadian government boarded the
steamer Queen Victoria at Quebec. They had heard that representatives of Nova Scotia, New
Brunswick and PEI were meeting in Charlottetown to discuss Maritime union and they hoped to
crash the party... |
|
| Pierre Elliott Trudeau, politician, writer, constitutional lawyer, prime minister of Canada 1968-79 and 1980-84 (b at ... |
|
|
| Few countries were affected as severely as Canada by the worldwide Depression of the 1930s. It is estimated that ... |
|
|
| Louis Riel, Métis leader, founder of Manitoba, central figure in the NORTH-WEST REBELLION (b at Red River ... |
|
|
| Evangelical Christian Church, often called the Christian Church (Christian Disciples), is a denomination stemming from ... |
|
|
| Few countries were affected as severely as Canada by the worldwide Depression of the 1930s. It is estimated that ... |
|
|
| The Toronto Maple Leafs are a HOCKEY team, was formed in 1927 when Conn SMYTHE purchased and renamed the Toronto St ... |
|
|
| Sears Canada Inc, headquartered in Toronto, is a Canadian retailer incorporated in 1952. In 1953 operating under the ... |
|
|
| John Ware, "Nigger John," horseman, rancher (b near Georgetown, SC 1845; d near Brooks, Alta 11 Sept 1905). ... |
|
|
| Land claims are dealt with by a process established by the federal government to enable INDIANS, INUIT and ... |
|
Browse the rich visual resources of The Canadian Encyclopedia through thematic galleries of Canadian Art, History, Nature, People, and Science and Technology.
Illustrations, lively text, animations, sounds and games help make learning about Canadian history, art, geography, architecture and other topics entertaining as well as informative.
The ultimate test of your knowledge of Canada, trivial and otherwise. You can choose from more than 60 dynamic quizzes with visual or text clues. Your scores depend on the speed with which you answer and the number of clues you need. Results are sent to you by email and high scores are posted on the site.
This unique resource includes more than 6000 events from Canadian and world history. It can be searched by era, subject, keyword or date. To find out what happened on your birthday, select the month and day of your birth.
This selection of the 100 "greatest" events in Canadian history was made by editor in chief James H. Marsh to draw attention to events that have left an indelible memory in the minds of later generations.
| THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MUSIC IN CANADA |
|
| 'Nos futures étoiles'. National singing competition conceived and organized by CBC Montreal. The unsponsored program ran 1947-55 on the French-language radio network and was produced by Berthe Lavoie-Fortin and Marcel ... |
|
|
