The History of the Quebec Francophones and the Attempts Made to Accommodate Their Concerns

The History of the Quebec Francophones and the Attempts Made to Accommodate Their Concerns

The merging of two separate and distinct groups is what has given Canada its unique cultural identity. While some early politicians believed assimilation was the best approach to building a strong Canada, it became increasing difficult to convince the Quebec francophones that a national identity should take precedence over retaining their unique culture. Opposing viewpoints and different agendas have caused mistrust among the Quebec francophones towards the federal government and mistrust among other provinces towards Quebec. Constitutional amendments have been proposed on a number of occasions and, to date, none have been successfully adopted in their entirety. This paper will provide a brief overview of the history of the Quebec francophones and the attempts made to accommodate their concerns. Secondly, it will suggest some possible constitutional amendments that would help to meet the needs of Quebecois while helping to keep Canada intact.

Quebec history goes back to a time when the French and English shared a place in a new land. The French colony in Canada was relatively small and garnered little attention in France. In 1759, the British colony with strong support from England took control of the French colony. While the British were initially determined to destroy all forms of cultural distinction among the French by introducing the Royal Proclamation of 1763, the bill was never enacted. (Whittington & Williams, 2000: 359) The seigneurial system was restored and Quebec remained an agrarian society guided by the Catholic Church.

This predominantly rural province began to fall behind the rest of Canada in both gove...

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...ess the concerns of Quebecer's as well as the concerns of all Canadians. Recognizing Quebec's distinctness must be accompanied by recognizing the distinctness of the first nations people. Addressing Quebec's concerns over Senate reform must include equitable representation based on population from all regions along with accountability through the election process. Finally, secession provision can be included in the constitution by allowing people the opportunity to make sound decisions based on full awareness of the consequences of secession.

Obviously, there is no single solution to addressing Quebec concerns and ensuring Canada's unity. Nor is the solution simple and readily attainable. Before constitutional amendments can be considered the consideration must be made whether concessions to one province will cause a negative backlash in other provinces.