Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: In 1976 the provincial parliament in Québec ratified the Charter of the French Language, or La Loi 101. The Charter is a collection of linguistic laws meant to promote the French language in Québec, and limit the development of other languages, primarily English. Since its ratification, supporters of the Charter have called it a protection of “French-Canadian identity.” The Charter has also come under scrutiny from Anglophones (English speakers) and Allophones (non-native English or French speakers) in Québec. The following analyzes one group of Allophones, Chinese-Canadians, in Québec’s largest city, Montréal. In particular, this analysis examines how the Chinese-Canadian community in Montréal perceives their self-identity as threatened by the Charter of the French Language.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The recent years have witnessed serious backlashes against multicultural policies throughout the Western world. In Canada, by contrast, multiculturalism has not only survived an international climate characterized by financial recession, fear of terrorism, and security concerns. It even evolved into social imaginary that deeply impacts Canada’s self-understanding as a nation. In this paper, I examine how the idea of Canada as a multicultural nation is (re)produced through the construction of boundaries with “American Gesellschaft (Society)” on the one hand and “Québécois Gemeinschaft (Community)” on the other. With the negative elements of these two social formations projected to the outside of Canadianness, multicultural nationhood is represented as the incarnation of a “just balance” between individual freedom and communal solidarity. In sum, Canadian multicultural nation-building is an example of how some great divides are created with the aim to bridge others.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This paper examines the impact of external pressures to linguistically conform placed upon a linguistic minority enclave. The project asserts when linguistic, economic, political, judicial and cultural pressures mount members of the enclave react differently to the pressures. Older members of the community perceive their linguistic comfort zone as shrinking, while younger members perceive their linguistic comfort zone as increasing in size.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Since forming a parliamentary party in 1994, the Bloc Québécois has been interpreted exclusively as the formal federal manifestation of the Québec separatist movement. Although the party’s raison d’être is well known, less so are its actions in the House of Commons. Taking a new approach to the new party, this is a study of the Bloc Québécois as a party in Canada’s Parliament. In order to learn more about the Bloc’s performance in the House of Commons and its committees, the paper examines the Bloc’s contribution to debate on the formulation of national policy. Contrary to what might be expected of a separatist party, the paper shows the BQ contributing willingly and substantively to parliamentary deliberation on a wide array of pan-Canadian issues. Moreover, during debate, Bloquistes are rarely found demanding an independent Québec state; instead, they address legislation brought before the House, depicting their party as promoting a liberal, social-democratic set of values. Far from being a maverick in Parliament, the BQ is a full participant. In fact, Bloquistes enhance the quality of parliamentary debate, and counterbalance the views of the right-wing Reform/Alliance/Conservative party. Throughout the paper the Bloc’s surprising parliamentary performance is explained by an analysis of the power that institutions impose upon the actions of political agents. It concludes that by accepting membership in the House of Commons, the BQ has been forced to conform to parliamentary rules and customs. Subsequently, Parliament has limited the party’s ability to advocate Québec secession, and has broadened its perspective to consider all matters of national concern. The paper closes by suggesting that the supposedly short-lived BQ now appears to have become a permanent fixture on Canada’s national political landscape.