RESOLUTION
QAHN Board of Directors (September 21, 2021)
RE: Modernization of Canada’s Official Languages Act
Considering that at a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Quebec Anglophone Heritage Network (QAHN), held on September 12, 2021, the Board discussed at length the Government of Canada’s proposal to modernize the Official Languages Act;
Considering that for over fifty years Canada’s Official Languages Act has represented one of the fundamental protections afforded the English-speaking minority of the Province of Quebec, and that as such it is essential to the long-term survival and vitality of that community;
Considering that QAHN recognizes that all Official Language Minority Communities across Canada, both French and English, are unique and that each has different needs that must be recognized and addressed;
Considering that QAHN believes the Government of Canada has an obligation to maintain substantive equality in the way it supports and funds these communities in the context of the Official Languages Act; a principle that is integral to our vision as a nation, and an important part of our cultural heritage;
Considering that QAHN considers any attempt by the Government of Canada to cede control of Official Language Minority Community support to the provincial authorities an abdication of Federal responsibility;
Considering that the Government of Canada’s document “English and French: Towards a Substantive Equality of Official Languages in Canada” does not reflect an adequate understanding or appreciation of the situation of the English-speaking minority of Quebec, and that the overwhelming emphasis in the document is on the protection and strengthening of the French language both inside and outside of Quebec;
It is hereby resolved that QAHN endorses the position of the Quebec Community Groups Network on this issue that the Government of Canada’s proposal to “modernize” the Official Languages Act is unacceptable in its current form.
Proposed by: Fergus Keyes
Seconded by: Ann Montgomery
All in favour. Carried.