Quebec may seem peaceful at the moment, but tensions are rising between the francophone majority and the “second rate” immigrant minorities. These tensions have always been about as the hardcore separatists have always loved to hate cultures that threatened to overtake theirs. Yes, the French language in North America is endangered and yes we have laws to address that, but to extend those laws and try to tell people how to live their lives around them just isn’t right and just isn’t fair.A PQ majority would do quite a bit to legitimize discrimination. First it would draw a very clear line between francophone Quebecers and second rate outcasts, the commonly referred to “maudit anglais.” We are living in the 21st century and many francophones these days have learned to accept the multicultural nature of Quebec but some just simply haven’t and those who haven’t are about to be empowered to be racist, prejudice and discriminatory thanks to a government that is already a dead weight in the water. Creating a Quebec Citizenship and coming down strong on immigrants is the way to empower your favorite majority and segregate the minorities you wish to destroy, does this sound familiar to you? Look back in history, this happened before in many parts of the world.
A video is being spread on YouTube, one where a group of English speaking Asian people were attacked by a francophone Quebecer on the streets of Montreal for not speaking French. Exit the Montreal island and this kind of hatred and discrimination surpasses believable. People like the angry man in this video should be shunned for such hatred and discrimination.
It is a shame that Anglophones have to live in fear in Quebec. With a platform promising to restrict access to English CEGEPs and to expand law 101 deeper into our personal lives, the Parti Quebecois is doing a good job dividing Quebec based on our cultural differences. Marois’s intolerance for immigrants, and particularly Muslims is something to note. It was the Parti Quebecois who wanted hijabs and other face coverings to be banned, along with other religious symbols in public places.
While government neutrality in terms of religion is a good thing, it is hypocritical to let the crucifix slide and it is damning to expand such a religious ban to public servants.
On top of this mess that Marois presents as a platform, comes mandatory French tests to take public office and a further sense of hatred towards the Anglophones and cultural minorities who thought they were Quebecers too with the right to vote, the right to speak and the right to live in peace – it appears the PQ want to destroy this for us.
Well, it is clear that the hardcore francophone separatists that will read this with a translator and a sense of disgust will have one response: if you cannot accept a goal for a uniform French culture that takes precedence over everyone and everything else, then the best option is to leave – and leave most Anglophones and immigrants shall, to the detriment of an already weak Quebec economy.
Pauline Marois had the opportunity to present Quebecers with a united approach to offering an alternative to the Charest government and while most Quebecers don’t want another referendum, it is certain that a vote on Quebec sovereignty, while a waste of time, would not hurt. But, with this polarized and charged identity campaign, it is almost imperative that the PQ be denied access to power because this is the kind of old and discriminatory platform that we fought to get rid of long ago. It was this sense of fear and this feeling of second rate citizens that is so clearly expressed from the PQ’s hardcore that have super-glued minorities to the Liberal party. No matter the faults, at least the Liberals didn’t come at us with an axe and a world full of hate.
Jean Charest asked at the beginning of this campaign: what kind of society we would want to live in? At the beginning, most would gladly say: not the one you’re offering us – one mired in corruption allegations, misguided principles and terrible economic mismanagement. When Marois got up to the batter’s plate and offered an alternative, she included a bombshell that would make Quebec society nearly unlivable for those who aren’t in the inner crowd. This cannot be forgotten or supported. This discriminatory attitude is one of defining who is a Quebecer and who is not and punishing those who don’t meet her guidelines. This should alarm you because of particular events that have happened in the world’s past.
Pauline Marois and the PQ are not an alternative to the Liberals, they are not in it for Quebecers, they are in it for themselves and for power. Let Marois keep chanting she wants a majority government, the wisest move we can make as a society is to not give it to her. Her intentions are not for our benefit, they are for our detriment. She made it clear: this campaign is not about building the Quebec of the future, it is about defining who is privileged enough to be a part of it and what rules they have to follow to be accepted. Good luck with that Mme. Marois, and shall the exodus begin, then try building a country that will be able to stand on its own two feet – without Anglophones and immigrants, your dream of a country is destined to fail. Even the Quebec Solidaire is able to build an inclusive society, tell us Mme. Marois, why aren’t you? Facebook, Twitter, Google +.
Related: Marois to Harper: I want more power, comprenez-vous?
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