September 2, 2010
Download the PDF of our latest issue here.
English schooling ban for immigrants struck down
Though the bill affected less than 10 per cent of Quebec students, 25 immigrant families will now be able to send their children to English-language schools
MONTREAL (CUP) — Canada’s highest court has struck down a Quebec law that prevented immigrants from sending their children to provincially funded English schools.
Last Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that Quebec will have one year to replace the Bill 104, after determining that it violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Some of the 25 families that have fought for seven years to send their children to English schools will soon be able to do so. Others will have to seek special permission from the provincial government.
Bill 104 was passed in 2002 to close loopholes in Quebec’s language laws. Because of the loophole, a handful of students who shouldn't have were able to attend public and provincially funded private English-language schools.
Quebec has restricted access to English-language schools since 1977.
In the decision, Justice Louis LeBel called the law “excessive” because it didn’t consider the specific circumstances of each child.
He also highlighted the low number of children affected by the law — less than 10 per cent of students eligible for English-language education — when it was passed in 2002.
The decision reaffirms a 2007 ruling by the Quebec Court of Appeal that also found the law to be unconstitutional; the Quebec government appealed the decision, leading to the Supreme Court case.
Alan Lombard, executive director of Quebec Provincial Association of Teachers, a federation that represents teachers in the English school system, said he was satisfied with the decision.
“We found that it’s a balanced ruling,” he said. “But we’re not sure it will have much practical application.”
He said he expects to see a small increase in the number of students enrolling in English schools.
Section 23 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees English and French speaking minorities the right to send their children to publicly funded schools that operate under the same language in which they received their education.
However, the charter right only applies to Canadian citizens, whose schooling took place in Canada. The charter also mandates that children who began their education in one language in Canada have the right to continue in that language.
Quebec law forbids students from attending English-language schools unless they fall into one of these categories.
However, some parents found a loophole, sending their children to unfunded private schools for a short period of time, and then transferring them into publicly supported schools.
Bill 104 was aimed at closing this loophole and preventing the use of these so-called “bridging schools.”
While the judge struck down the law, Quebec will be allowed to put limits on these schools in the new legislation.
“Bridging schools could become a mechanism for almost automatically circumventing the [Charter of the French Language’s] provisions on minority language educational rights, creating new categories of rights holders under the Canadian charter and, indirectly, restoring the freedom to choose the language of instruction in Quebec,” Judge Lebel wrote in the ruling.
The provincial government was not pleased with the ruling. Quebec’s minister of culture, Christine St-Pierre, whose department is responsible for enforcing the language laws, told reporters she was disappointed by the decision.
Opposition leader Pauline Marois of the Parti Québécois has said she wants the rules expanded to cover unsubsidized private schools.
English Schooling Ban for Immigrants
By Francine WestonThere is a lot of focus on the English schooling ban for immigrants being struck down, which affects less than 10 percent of the Quebec students. I question exactly where they are getting these statistics. Only 10 percent, so it is O.K. to negate the rights of these children? Bill 104 also affects every single francophone “Canadian.” (They are still in Canada!) They do not have a choice as well. There are some francophone parents who want to be able to have a choice in the selection of the school their children attend, which offers a quality education program which includes French and English. While these parents take pride in their French culture and heritage and are dedicated to the preservation of French, they are not so deluded to the reality that surrounds them of a sea of English in North America. They want a choice. There were many francophone families using the bridging schools as a port of entry to have access to either public or private English schools until 2002’s Bill 104. It was not just the immigrants. There are still many Francophones choosing private schools for their bilingual programs. The huge number of private schools in Quebec should tell you something about the desire for the right to choose. The amount of English the kids learn in the public French schools it abysmal, nothing until grade 6 and maybe 1 hour a week thereafter, if they are lucky. I imagine that the Francophone’s students in the bridging schools were not included in these statistics, where “the bill only affects 10% of Quebec students.” I’m sure Quebec doesn’t want to know the real statistics of the francophone families, who would like to have a choice. They manipulate the media, twist the logic or situation to meet their sole objective, which is to separate from Canada. They already act like they are a separate country. Note how many instances you hear “except in Quebec”.
Justice may be typical of most democracies, “except in Quebec” again applies, as witnessed by the Supreme Court of Canada’s travesty of justice by walking on eggshells to maintain the dysfunctional status quo by calling Bill 104 excessive and an infringement on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, while at the same time leaving the law in effect for another year for the Quebec government to figure out a way to manipulate the law to maintain the barriers to choice of education to create a black hole of logistical legal nightmares to never resolve the language problems that keep children languishing in this bottomless pit of revolving court dates, court cases and endless bureaucracy? The highest court of justice provides no justice!
We need to prepare our children for a world of future unknowns to be able to adapt to their environment with a variety of skills, and a smorgasbord of options, not just those mandated by a separatist tyranny of justice and a colluding Supreme Court of Canada, Canadian Government and Quebec Government. Do you really think they are considering the best interests of the child? Or is it their own best interests? It is Canada’s moral bankruptcy to safeguard all their Canadian children from the language zealots of an outdated mentality.
F.Y.I. note link below:
Education And The Future of Technology
“Did you know?” An interesting presentation on the momentum of change in the future and the exponential amount of information, knowledge and communication we will process in the near future.
http://www.flixxy.com/technology-and-education-2008-alt.htm
After viewing this link, reflect on the lunacy of Quebec limiting the education of their own children and leaving them handicapped and chained to Quebec without the skills to communicate globally. The Bill 104 is an unjust law and will hamper our children s future. A quality education is essential and even in Quebec it should include the choice to have access to learn English. It is the reality.
The Supreme Court says:
By DaveThe Supreme Court says: Quebec, you can't do that. You can't discriminate, you can't ignore the constitution, you can't just keep bashing on minorities.
Quebec says: But they're getting away, and we really, really wanna.
The Supreme court replies: Fine, then put a big bar of soap in a towel and whip away... it leaves less marks.
i am a 15 yr old child who
By helloi am a 15 yr old child who redid grade 9 because i am not eligble to go to a english public school If i was eligible i would of been in grade 10, right now im stuck in a french school, a year behind. THE LAW SHOULD CHANGE IMMEDIATELY
Injustice
By BenIt is a great injustice what is happening to our Quebec children and no one seems to care. This Quebec lunacy never ends, nor does it look like it ever will. The fact that there is such great apathy to the plight of the Quebec children who suffer their entire childhood due to the restrictive language laws, there should be no statute of limitations on the rights of these children to come back and sue the Quebec government for the infringement of their human rights should these children find themselves unemployable or immobile in adulthood due to Quebec’s French language shackles of insecurity. Just as children sue their abusers upon their entering adulthood, Quebec children should be able to sue Quebec for years of abuse. It is abusive to force children to go to French school, when they are clearly failing and falling behind. Education is supposed to provide opportunities to succeed, to learn, to grow & to gain confidence in oneself. To be coerced into French Education for years on end, where one does not feel adept in the French learning environment hinders the child’s self esteem, ability to learn and limits their future opportunities, their life. Canada should be ashamed.
Post new comment