Back to Parliament: Quebec to present a new model for the integration of immigrants
The Legault government will unveil a new model for the integration of newcomers on Thursday in order to avoid abuses like that of Bedford School, where girls were banned from playing soccer.
"For me, the Bedford School is one of the symptoms, one of the consequences of the ravages of the current Canadian multiculturalist model," said the Minister of Immigration, Francization and Integration, Jean-François Roberge, in an interview with our Parliamentary Office.
He specifies, however, that the bill was already in the works long before the revelations about this school in the Côte-des-Neiges district of Montreal.
According to investigators sent by Quebec, in addition to not being able to play soccer, female students also received less attention in the classroom from teachers of North African origin, although these allegations could not be corroborated by direct witnesses, the report notes.
Quebec identityWith its bill, the CAQ wants to "clarify Quebec's social contract," both for newcomers and for the state.
The CAQ government is thus taking up the torch of Quebec identity, which has served it well since 2018. "We started to defend our language and our values. Obviously, the work is not done," Premier François Legault told his caucus of MNAs last week.
The proposed model will be closer to interculturalism, where newcomers are invited to adhere to the majority culture, unlike Canadian multiculturalism, which recognizes neither the existence of a majority nor a minority.
"Clearly, for us, the Canadian multiculturalist model is harmful to the Quebec nation," said Minister Roberge, since it promotes multiple cultures "as if we did not have a common culture, a common language, fundamental values in Quebec."
The new framework law will therefore become the reference for all government agencies on how to integrate newcomers. It will encompass the Quebec Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Act respecting the laicity of the State and the Charter of the French Language.
«Ghettoïsation»Its impact will be felt in the long term, by directing government action, whether through CEGEPs, municipalities or the local library.
For example, if a community celebration is organized with public funds, it will have to include elements of interactions between cultures, Roberge said, without being able to give more details before the bill is tabled in the National Assembly.
"We are not opposed to diversity, on the contrary, we want diversity. We want to oppose ghettoization," he stresses. His model, the minister promised, will invite newcomers to "join," but also to "contribute" to Quebec culture.
For Jean-François Roberge, this new approach will present immigrants with a clear choice before choosing Quebec.
"Right now, I'm coming to Canada, in a multiculturalist model," he says. When the law is passed, we will say to ourselves: "I am arriving in a place that has a different model, that has different rules, that has its own identity. Am I interested? Yes, perfect, I'm coming to Quebec. No? I'm going to go somewhere else.'"
"For me, the Bedford School is one of the symptoms, one of the consequences of the ravages of the current Canadian multiculturalist model," said the Minister of Immigration, Francization and Integration, Jean-François Roberge, in an interview with our Parliamentary Office.
He specifies, however, that the bill was already in the works long before the revelations about this school in the Côte-des-Neiges district of Montreal.
According to investigators sent by Quebec, in addition to not being able to play soccer, female students also received less attention in the classroom from teachers of North African origin, although these allegations could not be corroborated by direct witnesses, the report notes.
Quebec identityWith its bill, the CAQ wants to "clarify Quebec's social contract," both for newcomers and for the state.
The CAQ government is thus taking up the torch of Quebec identity, which has served it well since 2018. "We started to defend our language and our values. Obviously, the work is not done," Premier François Legault told his caucus of MNAs last week.
The proposed model will be closer to interculturalism, where newcomers are invited to adhere to the majority culture, unlike Canadian multiculturalism, which recognizes neither the existence of a majority nor a minority.
"Clearly, for us, the Canadian multiculturalist model is harmful to the Quebec nation," said Minister Roberge, since it promotes multiple cultures "as if we did not have a common culture, a common language, fundamental values in Quebec."
The new framework law will therefore become the reference for all government agencies on how to integrate newcomers. It will encompass the Quebec Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Act respecting the laicity of the State and the Charter of the French Language.
«Ghettoïsation»Its impact will be felt in the long term, by directing government action, whether through CEGEPs, municipalities or the local library.
For example, if a community celebration is organized with public funds, it will have to include elements of interactions between cultures, Roberge said, without being able to give more details before the bill is tabled in the National Assembly.
"We are not opposed to diversity, on the contrary, we want diversity. We want to oppose ghettoization," he stresses. His model, the minister promised, will invite newcomers to "join," but also to "contribute" to Quebec culture.
For Jean-François Roberge, this new approach will present immigrants with a clear choice before choosing Quebec.
"Right now, I'm coming to Canada, in a multiculturalist model," he says. When the law is passed, we will say to ourselves: "I am arriving in a place that has a different model, that has different rules, that has its own identity. Am I interested? Yes, perfect, I'm coming to Quebec. No? I'm going to go somewhere else.'"