2y ago

Biden administration raises ‘concerns’ about aspects of Quebec language law

Biden administration raises ‘concerns’ about aspects of Quebec language law | Globalnews.ca

Michel Rochette, president of the Quebec branch of the Retail Council of Canada, sees the Biden administration's message as a "signal'' couched in diplomatic language.

23 comments

How about Biden addresses his own country's cultural issues before weighing in on the neighbours.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism
  
  Come on. This is very clearly “howaboutism”.
  
  I mean, in this case it's, "Mind your business." Quebec's language laws are not the USA's concern.
- It’s an economic issue not a cultural one for them
  
  The US should adopt Chinese as an official language, in order to make it easier to engage with Chinese businesses.
  It's an economic issue.
- An "advisor for the United States Trade Representative" raised concerns.
Say what you want about Québec's language laws; what's a nuisance to American business interests is most likely good for the people.
- I feel like the the great zeitgeist is going to shift towards vindicating the Qubecois and their bloody minded nationalism pretty soon. You can feel the rest of the western world starting to think and act just like the nationalists here.
  
  "Bloody-minded nationalism" is a bit of an overstatement, don't you think? Unless you're going back over 50 years ago, Québec nationalism has been rather meek.
  I have a lot of feelings about Québec's language laws and its nationalism (I'm French-Canadian from outside Québec, for context) but I find it interesting how Québec making the use of its language necessary for participation in society is seen as nationalistic, even racist, yet Canada making English necessary for participation in society is seen as perfectly acceptable. I bet a lot of the same people who whine about Québec's language laws would go berserk if they saw non-English signage dominate their community.
To the extent that I have an opinion on this law, it certainly won't be moved based on it's impact on American businesses.
- Which people do you think are demanding changes to the language law?
  
  All the people in Quebec interested in french Canadian culture and that can see where Bill 101 (and now Bill 96) are lacking.
How about the Biden administration not murder children first before commenting on other countries
Hue. If French is threatening English as a language of commerce for the Americans, that means Quebec is going in the right direction.
I don't agree with all the policies put in place by the Quebec government, but I'm giggling as I read this article. It's good news for the French language.

23 comments