FRANCHOPHONE COLLECTIVE RIGHTS Protecting the French language

PROTECTING FRENCH LANGUAGE Je me souviens que, né sous le lys, je crois sous la rose (“I remember/ That born under the lily/ I grow under the rose)” 

SS7: A REVIEW B.N.A Act in 1867 – Canada is bicultural and bilingual At the time of Confederation (1867), guaranteed public schools for the Protestant Minority in Quebec and the Catholic minorities in the rest of Canada At the time, most protestants spoke English, most Catholics spoke French But things get a little diverse…

SS7: A REVIEW MB entered Confederation 1870 as a bilingual province Rights to gov’t funded Catholic schools for Francophone and Protestant schools for Anglophone Manitoba Schools Act (1890) Abolished gov’t funding for Catholic Schools Made MB English only province

Bill 101 – Charte de la langua francais Passed by Q.C gov’t in 1977. (before C. of R.F) Strengthen (affirm) French identity – French are a distinct people and language expresses this. Want French to be language of gov’t and everyday language of work, education and business. Ex: In Quebec, commercial signs could only be in French All Francophones and immigrants in Quebec must attend a Francophone schools How would this challenge our Charter of Rights & Freedoms?

This law protects the French language by demanding that French be the predominant language of business (including signage) and limit access to English education

The 80s came and so did Pierre Trudeau… P. 150 – Bill 101 & Charter of Rights & Freedoms (1982) Under sections 16-20 of the charter French and English rights are protected. New Brunswick is also established as the only officially bilingual province. Section 23 gives French or English minorities the right to be publicly educated in their own language. (Publicly Funded Schools both Catholic and Non Catholic)

Connect to Big Ideas p. 148 Consider the following question: To what extent should provincial and federal gov’ts in Canada support and promote the education rights of official language minorities? Support your position with three points about the history of these rights. Explain how the inclusion of these rights in the Charter affects your answer.

PAT Practice Questions Complete the PAT Practice Questions on Minority Language rights in Canada

METIS COLLECTIVE RIGHTS A TIMELINE OF EVENTS

Did not have treaty rights as they were not First Nations Treatment of Metis: A Social 7 Review Did not have treaty rights as they were not First Nations After the creation of Manitoba (1870), the government issued scrip instead of establishing reserves. (some were given a choice between scrips or becoming a “Treaty Indian” under a numbered treaty). To the government however, Metis did not have the same rights to land as FN and therefore did not require reserves) - Many found it was difficult to find a large area where the family could settle together, so they ended up selling their scrip, forever ending their rights to land in Manitoba (moved to Saskatchewan and Alberta) Eventually Alberta did create settlement areas for Metis groups Pg 157

TIMELINE OF RIGHTS 1885 – The N.W Resistance was seen by Metis as a movement to secure their land and rights. It was seen by others as an attempt to overthrow Canada’s authority.

TIMELINE: ALBERTA in all this.. 1930s – Metis of Alberta lobbied AB government to set aside land for the Metis 1938 - AB passes the Metis Population Betterment Act which creates 12 temporary Metis settlements HOWEVER 1940s-1960s – Temporary settlements did not give them control of land. Also, 4 of the 12 were unsuitable for farming, hunting, or fishing. The 4 closed and land was given back to AB government

TIMELINE OF RIGHTS 1982 – Lobbyists convinced the gov’t that the Métis should be recognized in Constitution (section 35). Treaties should include First Nations, METIS and INUIT

TIMELINE OF RIGHTS 1990 – Several provincial acts were legislated giving the Métis permanent land scattered throughout Alberta 2003/2004 – Metis get hunting/fishing rights similar to those of F.N

Métis Collective Rights Métis are recognized as an official minority in section 35 of the charter. They are given the right to the land as an inherent right meaning they are entitled because they are First Nations. Métis are defined as anyone with mixed First Nations and European blood.

Conclusion of Ch 4 Government ideas and attitudes towards F.N were thought to be beneficial for both. Ideas were good but Ethnocentric attitudes led to unequal treatments. The different minority groups get protection under the charter.

Think about it! Go though the chapter and find examples to help you answer the question: Do you think the government of Canada does a good job protecting the collective rights of minority groups?