There are heroes and zeroes in the fight for the French in Quebec.
The “hero” of the week is Jean-Denis Garon. The member for Mirabel complained about being greeted with a “Hello/Hi!” and a “Next/Suite!” at a SAQ branch in the Jean Talon market.
But the “zero” of the week is Tucker Carlson. The former Fox News host claimed Anglos were “forced” to leave Montreal, which was stripped of its Anglo-American heritage.
What a week
Clearly we've just had a strange week. Last Thursday, SAQ management warned its employees to remind them that “Hello, Hi” is banned in this state-owned company. Think about it for two seconds: it makes no sense for someone to speak to you bilingually in a company owned by the government of a state where there is only one official language, French. And I completely disagree with Geneviève Pettersen, columnist at 98.5 fm, who said: “It’s a storm in a teacup.” It’s petty politics.”
As Jean-Denis Garon told me in an interview at QUB: “If we are not proud of our language, who will respect us?”
Speaking of respect, another member of the Bloc Québécois, Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay, posted a surprising photo on Facebook: a restaurant that proudly states: “Service available in French.” As if it were a favor for this company to do something for us. And where was this poster? At the PFK in Chicoutimi!!! On Talbot Boulevard!!!
That's why I burst out laughing when I heard Tucker Carlson's stupid statements. The former Fox News host was touring Alberta and said: “I’m going to say the most controversial thing. I witnessed Montreal being stripped of its Anglo-American heritage. I am not anti-French, I say that very clearly, not at all. But I'm Anglo and I have friends in Montreal, and within a generation it was over, they had to leave. They all said, 'Okay, I guess we're going to Ontario.'”
Carlson further laments that no one rebelled, saying, “My grandfather built this city, I'm not going anywhere!” And why, according to Carlson, did no one rebel?
“No one said that because no one could say out loud what was really happening: a series of hostile actions directed against you because of things you didn't choose, like who you were at birth. Once you allow that to happen, you no longer have a future.”
What a redneck! While he was in Alberta, wasn't he interested in the fate of French speakers outside Quebec who don't have first Anglo rights in Quebec?
And he has the courage to tell us that he is not “anti-French”? Montreal's missing Anglo heritage? This is what he will tell Air Canada's Michael Rousseau…
Zeros in Paris
Oh yes, finally I received a press release from French television TF1 announcing that Lara Fabian would be taking part in a new talent show. And what is the name of this new show? Dream team.
One thing is certain: in France they “pay attention” to their French.