-
Duplessis Era and French Nationalism
-English-speaking business owners and the federal government were the source of Quebec’s problems.(need to stop interfering)
-To defend the French language, the Roman Catholic church and French culture against the English.
-He wanted to increase Quebec’s power to control its own destiny.
-Ruling with his iron fist, Duplessis was nicknamed le chef.
-Duplessis ruled Quebec from 1933-1939 and from 1944-1959 when he died. -
La Grande Noirceur
-The Duplessis era was referred to as “La Grande Noirceur” (“The Great Darkness”)
-Many secrets and important facts kept away from the public
-An era of corruption
-Under Duplessis, Quebec made no social, political or economical advancements. -
The Richard Riots Significance
-Highlighting tensions the French and English and the division between them.
-Huge significance because the Richard riots triggered French Nationalism. And the last straw for Quebeckers.
-Didn't want English Canada ruling them. -
The Richard Riots
- Maurice Richard a hockey layer for the Montreal Canadians nicknamed the Rocket (1942-1960) -He got in a fight and hit a linesman and was suspended for the rest of the season and the playoffs.
-
The Quiet Revolution
-After Duplessis death, the provincial Liberal won in Quebec under the leadership of Jean Lesage. Famous slogan (“time for change”)
-To promote French culture, language.
-Take control of the future of Quebec, run by Quebeckers.
-Lower the influence of the Catholic church.
-And Increase economic-social standards and Quebec's people.
-Students were free to study sciences and technology, business and commerce; the government instituted provincial health care. -
The quiet revolution - effects
-Quebec nationalism grows into an air of separation.
-Quebec seeks to control programs running in Quebec.
-Quebec sought special status in Canada which angered other provinces.
-Secularization. -
The FLQ
-The FLQ Front de libération du Québec
- Is a terrorist group which formed in the name of a free Quebec.
-Between 1963 and 1970, they had set off a number of bombs, mainly in Montreal, killing 6 people and wounding many others -
The Bi and Bi Commission
-PM Lester B established the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism in 1963.
-Canada should become a bilingual country with French and English as its two official languages.
-Develop a national strategy to promote both languages across the country
-Protection of language minority rights. -
Visit from from the French president
-French President, Charles de Gaulle, was invited by the Quebec government to visit the magnificent Expo 67.
-Felt the same as when France was liberated by the Nazis.
-Vive le Quebec libre!
-Canadians were stunned by his comparison of the Canadian government to the Nazis
-Lester B. Pearson, prime minister at the time was outraged.
-DeGaulle cancelled the rest of his trip and returned immediately to France. -
The Official Languages Act
-Pierre Trudeau was determined to do more to appease Quebec.
-The government passed The Official Languages Act this act made Canada officially bilingual.
-All federal government agencies were required to offer all services in both “official languages”
-More francophones were appointed to senior government positions
-Encouraging Canadians to understand each other’s culture. -
The October Crises
-The October Crisis is the name given to a series of events centred around the kidnapping of two government officials (James Richard Cross the trade commissioner, and Pierre Laporte the Labour Minister) by the Quebec separatist group the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) in Montreal during October 1970. -
The October crisis Effects
-The October Crisis escalated quickly resulting in the deployment of soldiers throughout the province and the only use of the War Measures Act in Canadian history (which was very controversial).
-The October Crisis is also notable for the effect it had upon public opinion, shifting separatist beliefs away from the violent action and toward political campaigning as a means of achieving independence for Quebec. -
Bill 22
-Birth rates in Quebec had declined following WW II.
-Immigrants came to Quebec and they preferred to learn the English language, upset the French-Canadians.
-Henri Bourassa passed Bill 22.
-French was proclaimed as the official language of the public service in Quebec
-Only people who passed the English test could attend English schools. -
Le Parti Quebecois Victory (“Frogs have teeth”)
-A provincial political party in Quebec
-Their main aimis to separate
-Leader is René Lévesque
-1976 Parti Quebecois Victory
-The first time Quebeckers had elected a government dedicated to an independent Quebec. -
Bill 101 Impact
-English-speaking Quebeckers were outraged and in 1977, 50,000 people left the province.
-Many companies moved their head offices to Toronto and Calgary.
-Many Quebec store owners were upset by the new law.
-Formed a group called Alliance Quebec to fight this ruling
-1988, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled the English language had to be evident somewhere on the signs. -
Bill 101
-French was to be used in government, the courts and businesses.
-Businesses could only display commercial signs in French.
-French became the official language of the workplace.
-Quebeckers had the right to use French in the workplace
-Quebeckers were now able to access jobs only previously open to those who spoke English -
Sovereignty Association
Sovereignty means Quebec would be politically independent.
-Quebec would collect its own taxes.
-Quebec would have its own citizenship.
-Quebec would have its own immigration laws to protect French culture.
Association = close economic ties with the rest of Canada.
-Share the same currency.
-Free trade with Canada. -
Referendum Round 1 Results /Response
-Over 90% of the people in Quebec voted, 40% voted yes and 60% voted no.
-Trudeau had been against separation. He wanted Canada united
-He promised the people of Quebec a new constitutional arrangement if the referendum was defeated.
-Trudeau also wanted Canada’s constitution to belong to Canada (not to England). -
Night of the Long Knives
-PM Pierre Trude wanted to bring the constitution home however some feared it would diminish their influence, transferring power from elected politicians to non-elected judges.
-Gang of 8 who disagree with Trudeau's dream.
-The Gang of Eight challengedTrudeau's threat and took it all the way to Supreme Court. -
Night of the Long Knives
-One night Trudeau went home and the premiers retired to their rooms in Ottawas Château Laurier Hotel were they eventually made a new deal, except Lévesque, who was staying across the river in Hull.
-The new deal was signed by Trudeau and nine of the premiers that morning. Only Lévesque refused to endorse it.
-"I have been stabbed in the back during the night by a bunch of carpetbaggers," Quebec Premier René Lévesque later wrote of the events of November 1981. -
Trudeau brings the Constitution home
-On April 17, 1982, Queen Elizabeth II came to Canada to proclaim the new Constitution Act on Parliament Hill.
-Canada is completely sovereign.
-7 provinces have to agree to make changes to the constitution.
-Charter of rights and freedoms is in the constitution. -
Meech Lake Accord 1987
-Purpose of this agreement Initiated by the PM Brian Mulroney to create constitutional harmony by bringing Quebec into the revised constitution.
-However, other “distinct” groups in Canada, such as the Aboriginal peoples and women in general, felt that Quebec should not have special status if no other group did.
-Ended in a failure. -
1999 Clarity Act
-The supreme court ruled that Quebec has no right to separate.
-It would need to negotiate with the federal government, nine other provinces, and the Aboriginal nations living in Quebec and other minorities.
