Quebec’s English-speaking community is coming together to fight the province’s language reform, Bill 96.
The Quebec English School Boards Association (QESBA) along with the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN), the English Parents Committee Association (EPCA) and the Quebec Federation of Home Schools Association (QFHSA) say they have “no other option but to fight for the complete rollback of this measure.”
The Legault government this week decided to go ahead with the English school board elections after postponing them several times.
The elections will be held Sept. 26.
Reaction was swift, with the boards expressing disappointment the vote is not being held at the same time as the municipal elections across Quebec, which are set for Nov. 7.
With the anticipated federal election and the municipal vote, the decision means some voters will likely have to go to the polls three times in the span of a few weeks, Quebec English School Boards Association vice-president Noel Burke said in a statement.
QCGN President Marlene Jennings said in a tweet that the government is not making it easy to improve voter turnout by holding the school board vote close to other elections.
The Quebec Community Groups Network is heartened by an encouraging decision last week from the Court of Appeal in our community’s fight against the imposition of Bill 40.
In August, the Quebec English School Boards Association (QESBA) had obtained an injunction from Superior Court suspending application of Bill 40 for English boards until the merits of the case could be argued. The Court of Appeal has now maintained that stay. Read more.
The Quebec English School Boards Association (QESBA) notes that the Quebec government forced Bill 40 through the National Assembly using closure – “despite unanimous opposition to the legislation and in complete disregard for the English-speaking community’s right to manage and control its minority language educational institutions.”
The QCGN is funded by the Government of Canada through the Department of Canadian Heritage.
