I am not sure if very many Canadians realize this; but “discrimination by language”, in our country is legal.
Yes, you heard it. LEGAL; as in guaranteed by the Charter of Rights.
Under Equality Rights 15.(1) Every individual is equal before and under the law and has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination and in particular ,without discrimination based on race ,national or ethnic origin , colour , religion , sex, age or mental or physical disability.
With a large amount of the charter related to minorities’ language rights; why was language omitted under conditions of discrimination?
The United Nations in their discrimination clause has language as a condition for discrimination and has chastised our nation on numerous occasions for the practice of language discrimination, and yet our politicians continue to condone it here.
Presently, I have been protesting at the Eastern Ontario Health Unit in Cornwall, ON; which by the way is 100% bilingual, which means 80% of the population cannot work there. This factor is not based on merit but language. I will continue to demand our political leaders put a stop to language discrimination at the various local and provincial sites that practice language discrimination through grossly disproportional hiring practices.
I am not asking our politicians to remove bilingualism. I am simply asking that they put a stop to the provincial practice of language discrimination and bring fair hiring practices through the democratic principle of hiring based on representation by population.
One of the basic principles of democracy is the idea of representation by population. Why do our provincial leaders not abide by this principle and stop language discrimination pertaining to the provincial hiring practices?
With the provincial election around the corner, I encourage all of you to exercise your democratic rights and vote. Also, ask those provincial leaders if they are willing to take a stand against this type of discrimination.
Christopher Cameron RN
Long Sault, Ontario
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Great to see so many people fighting ‘the good fight’ in Cornwall! I wish all of you the very best.
@ Jim. So many people? I think the Anglo Freedom-Fighters are down to about four or five right now. Enough for a weekly Bridge game on Thursday evenings.
Chris what you may not get is that a very large percentage of people do speak French even as a second language and are mighty good at it. We know people in Ottawa who speak 3 and 4 languages fluently and at the advanced level. There are some who speak a lot more as well. If you only have one language it is a handicap. As for discrimination remember what happened to one woman who worked in the city of Cornwall and that man from Hamilton knew that she had crones disease and had to use the bathroom a lot and he fired her. He was the one in HR hired by Cornwall when he left Hamilton. People do not get jobs because of their religion and their nationality till today and yes discrimination exists and it is only hidden so as not to be so noticeable. We all want fairness and I am with you on that one as well but there is no fairness. Look at Bare Ass getting his sons in the fire department and the cops along with his friend’s son who got in the Barney Fife PD who writes columns in papers. For years I have experienced all this in Cornwall and I was so mighty upset that we took off for Ottawa. My own daughter went through the same discrimination and we left for good.
Jules. Any more than two or three lines, and people don’t read it.
Yes Jules, please, shorter and on point.
Jules making language mandatory as a condition of hire eliminated 80% of the population not based on merit but language and that is discrimination! Government enforced discrimination at that.
What defines where numbers warrant? 100% like the health unit?
where the area is 80% unilingual English and 500 people who speak French only locally.
Furtz 4 or 5 people I guess that’s why Chris had 3000 signature’s on a petition ,there are many who do not agree to it .
But once again calling them Anglo Freedom fighters is no different then calling them bigots,French hater or racist …you see you are the type that labels others…take a look in the mirror buddy ,have we labelled you here .NO. But its you that has already degraded the conversation ….why all the hate..Francophile.
Its legalized discrimination !
At Access NS in Halifax, they are now providing for one of the tellers to be bilingual even though only .03% of the population of NS is French speaking only and now the Hfx Police Chief and their spokesperson are Quebecois.
I must be honest: it gives a ray of hope to the unilingual English in northern and eastern New Brunswick. // It’s been 50 years that Canadians in NB,and QC, have waited for ON to react to the hell that the O.L.A has brought on our society and economics. Face it : if you support the O.L.A., you support forced bilingualism. Simple ! And, now proving simple. // It’s unfair and unreasonable to hate Quebec separatists / sovereignists of NB and QC. // The same situation is now moving across borders- simply because we decided to be ‘politically correct’. If ON accepts The O.L.A. with absolutely no regard for its potential enforcement procedures, then, like the rest of us, suffer the consequences. // Our only hope, and yours, is for administrators of hospitals and other institutions, along with the politicians, to DEMAND and institute FULL and COMPLETE ‘ bilingualism ‘. That way they can hire a few token English people with some French and pack the institution with an over-whelming majority of French – who really HATE to speak English. What a party ! Our situation has now gone way beyond that the next LOGICAL stage : French ONLY in designated areas with duality in all the others. Objecting to what is called ‘bilingualism’ is USELESS. No matter how unfair it is, the enemy to Canada, just as in Ukraine, is the enforcement of French as an official language. Give them all the help you can; then, Ontario and Canada might wake up and bring in a new official language act. L+
Chris,
Thank you for standing up for us all. It is indeed frightening and potentially dangerous to speak out against Official Languages Policies/Agendas and Official Languages Act. Any who speak out or even “question” the Policies are berated, demeaned, insulted and accused of being bigots, small minded, and labelled as stupid for being unilingually English. Truthfully, it’s makes perfect sense that most Canadians are English. We ARE English, therefore logically by extension, live in a sea of English. We (English) are a vast, overwhelmingly huge majority of Canadians. We operate, live, work, shop, pray and play in English. Many are bilingual or trilingual but not with minority French language skills. Outside of Quebec, French is such a very small linguistic minority, it is no small wonder most Canadians are not French or bilingual. It is indeed surprising that the French would expect/demand that the English embrace French language, culture, rights and heritage. There doesn’t seem to be a comprehension/understanding that We the English have our OWN language, rights, culture and heritage to celebrate.
This is especially perturbing when one explores the language policies of Quebec and the French, who live there. English is being eradicated, erased and denigrated in Quebec with relative impunity. Frightening stuff, indeed. As the entire World embraces English as the Universal language, there is no doubt now that the English will win the linguistic wars, in Canada. Especially, if, we the people, demand our Politicians restore OUR language (English) to prominence in Canada outside of Quebec. Logically, it would also be true that French would be the dominate language in Quebec.
Who knows in the not so distant future, the French will be asking for linguistic fairness and equality from the English. Based on how the English have been treated, it is probably going to be a case of “karma” biting back. It will behoove the French to remember that what comes around…goes around!
Write, call and demand better from our Politicians on the subject of linguistic discrimination. Time to restore proportional representation in our language policies. Not to mention, a restoration of common sense based on French population and concentration in Canada, as a whole!!!
The use of lobbyist parties such as SANB (FSLA in ON) work to promote Quebec’s power. There is a pan-Canadian plan (revealed in the 41st Session of Parliament, 1st sitting) and you government is well aware of it. Learn French because all the protests and letters are ineffective! By the time awareness puts enough people in the streets it is too late! Good article Chris.
Colleen, the biggest demise for the english is that they have been taken over by Irish and Scottish
Catholics {Gauls} and immigrants a big voting block for Ontario, who do not have english culture or values, or economic sense ,and thats why you have people like Rob Fords running your cities , Happy Pride Day!
As far as I can tell, this whole language experiment never had an actual unbiased needs assessment, our elected people should be told to give us one. Cost and declining census numbers should be a consideration.
“A systematic process to acquire an accurate, thorough picture of a system’s strengths and weaknesses, in order to improve it and meet existing and future challenges. “
Silentfrancoamerican ;
The issue of English taken over by Irish and Scottish because they do not have English culture or values has nothing to do with it .
The problem is its classified as Francophones vs Anglophone .
Because someone speaks a language(English)for example does not necessitate that the person is of English heritage.
Quebec institutes language laws to prevent assimilation in the perceived protection of the French language .
To have the rest of Canada to learn French if they are not of that heritage is assimilation, that same assimilation that Quebec so staunchly defends against.
Canada is the sum of over 200 different cultures and languages but only one is protected through legislation and taxpayer funded to the tune of billions yearly.
PatriotMuted, SANB is Société de l’Acadie du Nouveau-Brunswick, and FSLA in Ontario is our government act& regulations for French Language Services. A few provinces have French language services, are these just more stepping stones to Canada being French first? I know it sounds odd, but we are closer to that than most people imagine, of course all taxpayers are contributing to this unknowingly.
Silentfrancoamerican….not sure if your being deliberately obtuse or just are missing the point completely. English is growing, thriving and expanding it’s reach because it is INCLUSIVE of other languages, cultures and heritages.
Our language is dynamic, not stagnant and navel gazing in nature, unlike the French. As English continues to dominate and expand it’s reach globally…more and more Countries are embracing the English language.
Not to mention that English IS the language of all trade, commerce and business! French language usage continues to decline, nationally and globally. One thing is clear, the continued expectation/demand for French entitlements is unabated.
Anglo Freedom-Fighters? That’s part of the problem, people labeling others that are trying to keep their basic rights.
@ Hugger. Over the last few years on this site, there have bee countless letters and comments from people getting bent out of shape at the sight of bilingual signs, being spoken to in French in Timmins, and BS of that sort. It’s hard to take people like that seriously when there are real problems to deal with.
Furtz, you continue to see the small picture.
Hundreds of millions of dollars, entire government departments (the federal one has 170 employees & 13 million in salary alone)language training in case someone wanting to speak French in an Alberta park comes along, translators and on and on. Taxation has to pay for all this instead of being used for health care, roads, seniors and education. 4 school boards in Ontario etc etc. Oh, and jobs are going to who?
Furtz ” It’s hard to take people like that seriously when there are real problems to deal with.”
So you do not think discriminating by language is not a real problem?-how very Francophile of you !
These policies effect millions whether you think this is B.S. or not its still discrimination.
Yes Hugger1 labelling as Furtz has is wrong ,but its practiced very effectively to suppress freedom of speech as nobody wishes to be labelled as such.
Fight on Furtz for those discriminatory practices!
What we have here is the rights of minorities at the majorities expense.
we have far surpassed the threshold of providing minority language services to discriminating against the majority .
It only goes to say that some have more rights then others.
Canada is a bilingual country and there are two main languages of English and French and no matter who is the majority those two languages stick. You are all being replaced with foreigners and these people do not complain and get the job done and without unions, etc. You may all have to learn Mandarin and Cantonese Chinese because the East is going to be the New North America and those of us here in the west will be the New Chinese. If you think that I am pulling your leg on this do your investigations and you will see that what I tell you is the truth. You will all be in dreadful shock with the time.
Oh come on Highlander, you’re smarter than that. As I’ve said over and over, if there’s an issue with unfair discriminatory hiring practices, by all means fight to change it. Whining and chewing about bilingual signage or the fact that French is spoken in some Ontario towns is just plain stupid, and damages your cause.
Thanks for the compliment.
But Furtz you know as well that there are many dimensions here ,some others have different issues .If someone calls me a bigot for speaking up on the issue would I assume that all people think that way? No just that individual !
The issue as the LTE is about respecting the principles of democracy the sign bylaws are a different issue.
Minimum of 65% of all local government jobs are bilingual, to serve 20% of the population …. I guess this is just a statistical anomaly, or oversight right? wait the Local Health Unit is 100% bilingual -just another statistical anomaly enforced by the government!
NO IT’S DISCRIMINATION!
I always get a good laugh at all the doom and gloom predictions here.
Price Charles said Russian now is like Germany during Hitler’s time but he forgot to mention Canada is the same situation where a minority is taking over and the English language is not wanted – French is the number one language and if you can’t speak French you can’t get a job. Ottawa is now controlled by the French language. My folks came to an English speaking country and it turns it is no longer English.They have taken my country without firing a shot nor did they want to fight for it in W.W.2 They are takers but never givers of anything.
Dot Davies Fuhrman
@ Highlander. Dot Davies Fuhrman from Kelowna BC just illustrated my point, again.
Many feel the way Dot does ,Do many agree with your issues with the reverend on the freeloader ?
This is her beliefs and I believe she is in a unique position to state this.
Furtz have you researched government jobs in Ottawa ?
If Government is the people within(working for) government well Dot is right as Francophones represent 24% of the population but well beyond 65% in some circumstances 90-100%.
@ Highlander. Re the preacher, I think most people are repulsed by incessant gay-bashing and religious bigotry.
Re Dot, comparing Canada to Nazi Germany will really help your cause, won’t it? And there were thousands of French Canadians who fought and died in WW II.
Fight on!
I do not agree with the preachers comments and I certainly do not agree with your responses. But you certainly enjoy belittling people that have opposing views through sarcasm which can be used as a form of bullying !
People like the preacher and Dot who post hateful BS do a fine job at belittling themselves, and invite ridicule.
Seriously, do you agree with Dot that Canada has become like Nazi Germany, and that no French Canadians served and died in WW II? Or that all French Canadians are on the take and never contribute to Canadian society?
Wait a minute Dot most of the people in the military now are French Canadians and I see them here in Ottawa and plenty everywhere. The French people here in Canada are not foreigners (THEY ARE CANADIANS LIKE THE REST OF US) and all this bickering has to stop and we are living in a bilingual country. During the days of my much older sisters who were looking for employment during the days when I was born had to have French in Cornwall and this is true and when they didn’t have French they were stuck. My eldest sister is an RN and was administrative supervisor of a hospital in Cornwall and she got by with her basic French back in those days. Today if she were to apply as a nurse she would be rejected and my sister knew nursing so well that she could teach it. You need the French language today and if you lack it then send your kids to learn the French language so as they will be better off than yourselves. I was sent to a French school by my mom and I thank her so much for me learning the language and I paced her floor learning that it needed a new floor when someone else bought it from me. LOL LOL.
Jules, there was a large divide during WW1 & 2 on more than just conscription. Quebec was about 25% of the population during WW2 but only had 4% of the troops.
You need the French language today because of the constant push of laws, not actual need to communicate or high numbers. But if you are right, someone should tell the 2 million school kids in Ontario English schools to just stay home. (under 100,000 French BTW)
@ Eric. Interesting stat re WW2 service. Please post a citation or a link to its source.
jules says: “Today if she were to apply as a nurse she would be rejected and my sister knew nursing so well that she could teach it.’
That says it all! So therefore your sister would no longer be competent because the inability to converse in a minority language ? You did read that people .
” Wait a minute Dot most of the people in the military now are French Canadians and I see them here in Ottawa and plenty everywhere”
Yse because if you are not French you cannot go above a certain rank ….just another form of discrimination just as you said your sister would go through .
Yes Eric the francophones ran for the bush and hide .that’s a well known fact. I meet a commander who was on a ship of French sailor’s who in protest threw their guns overboard when leaving port for Europe ,he said the media never talked about it …I guess nothing has changed .That 4% of troops did not show up in Europe till near the end of war.
Highlander, you forgot the story about the French farmers shooting down RCAF planes that were on their way to Europe. And the French cooks in Montreal restaurants who were poisoning the troops who were about to ship out to the war.
You could write a book.
Fight on!
Funny how history is rewritten by those in power!
This just in!! There are reports that Franco Brown-Shirts and the Franco SS are conducting a major operation in Kelowna BC. A reliable source (Dot) is reporting that all Anglophones are being rounded up and loaded into boxcars.
Details to follow…
LOL LOL. ROLF! Furtz no wonder I like you, you are a riot. I can’t stop laughing here. There are French people out west and I once had a superintendent here in Ottawa who lived in Calgary and he was French Canadian. We will see things as they go along. The Mexicans are invading the US illegally even as we speak. The US will have the same problems soon where Spanish will be fighting for their rights as well even though most speak English. Open up “les plaines d’Abraham” and we will see another civil war here in Canada. LOL LOL. I am joking here as well but if people knew how bad a civil war is it is no joke at all. It has left my husband’s country torn apart and I am not just talking about infrastructure but I am talking about how the people have changed and not for the better either.
Ah sarcasm the tool of the uniformed !
Furtz, you forgot that German subs were in waters near Quebec City and this still did not increase enlistments within Quebec.
Yes Jules, making light of termination camps is a hoot!
It would be easier to get along if government would stop putting so much money and effort towards helping the “minority” I never knew a Francophone that needed that kind of help.
Eric, you forgot to mention that Francophones were feeding the German submariners poutine and smoked meat while they were visiting. And that 56% of the enlisted Francophones defected to the German side before the war was over.
Jules, the Mexicans have been “invading” the U.S.A. for years. Nothing will stop it, they will always find a way in. In the U.S.a. if you’re bilingual it means English and Spanish / Mexican, not here where it’s English / French.
Poutine is thought to have been invented in the 1950’s, using new math, this is after WW1 & 2.
Census numbers do not show a great departure from Quebec during the wars, do you mean 56% of the 4% who were conscripted? You can google to find evidence of the 4%, but I doubt the 56% number you mention could be found. Your attempt at humour must be preparing for summer holiday.
Eric. Poutine was invented in 1923 by Jean-Guy Poutine who was the head chef at Le Grenouille et Pêche restaurant located at the corner of St-Laurent and Viger. The French, being the most selfish people on the planet, kept it a closely guarded secret in order to deprive the Anglos of the delightful dish. Google it.
Fight on!
You mean the CBC is wrong? And a restaurant in Quebec would have frog in it’s name?
http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/lifestyle/food/my-canada-includes-tourtiere/vive-la-poutine.html
More than a few have claimed to be poutine’s inventor but it is widely accepted that it all began in Warwick, Que. In 1957, a customer walked into Warwick’s Le Café Idéal and asked its owner, Fernand Lachance, to throw in some cheese curds with his fries. Lachance used the Quebec slang “poutine” to describe the mess and voilà, poutine was born.
@ E. The CBC is a filthy commie institution that has been taken over by hard-core French separatists. They tell nothing but lies!
The existence of poutine became known to the non-Franco world at the end of WW II when those German submariners started talking about the food that the Quebecois traitors were feeding them while they lurked in the depths of the St Laurence near Quebec City.
How did a discussion about the provincial leaders respect for the principles of democracy turn into a discussion on poutine?
It’s quite simple Hugger. The introduction of poutine to Canadian cuisine was vital to the Francophone conquest of Canada. There isn’t a town or village in the land where poutine can’t be found. Be very afraid…
Furtz it certainly appears that through your sarcastic remarks that you are anti French .Its clear that you are a Francophile, but is your intent that to discredit the need for fair hiring practices ?
With your approach here some would think that you are anti-French and thereby discredit other posters through association !
So do you believe in the principles of democracy ?
Do you agree fair representation with regards to hiring practices ?
Should unilingual people English or French not have equal opportunities to government employment?
Do you agree affirmative action through language requirements should not have limits and thereby limit the majorities opportunities ?
Should 4% of the population have ENTITLEMENT to 65% of government jobs ?
Should Ontario provide bilingualism across Ontario for 4%(French) of the population and Quebec not for 17% of their(English)population ?
Would you encourage separate systems such as N.B has to provide linguistic services (a dual system ).
Do you believe in having French only health care clinics and English not permitted as 7 clinics do in Ontario ?
Being Ontario will evolve like N.B. and have duality of systems similar to N.B. whereby French only government services and bilingual services are provided …Do you agree in duality of services and have separate systems like N.B.(French only ) and bilingual ?
I think that when this subject degenerates into a French/English thing instead of the fairness which the French minority fought so hard to balance in Quebec the debate is lost. It’s just my opinion. I know when I attended a few meetings and heard a derogatory term used it was the end of my attending those meetings.
We should not be losing hard working, trained, committed community because of over zealous language policies. This is Ontario. It’s not Quebec or New Brunswick. It should not be a crime here to be a unilingual English speaker and it shouldn’t impact one’s ability to earn a living nor should what’s happening systemically be allowed to continue. It needs to be reviewed and policies need to change unless the Province of Ontario wishes to officially become bilingual. If that’s what we decide then super; but until that day arrives it’s time to stop with French language tests that some French people couldn’t even pass!
And it’s definitely time to take the politics out of health care delivery.