French and English Relations

The Decades
 WWI Conscription Crisis
in Canada
Prime Minister Robert
Borden
was convinced more
Canadian troops were Passchenda
needed to end the ele
war and bring home ↓
the Canadian soldiers
He pledged 500,000 Vim
soldiers (Many y
believed French Rid
Canadian were not ge
doing their part for ↓
the war effort.
 Voluntary enlistment from Quebec was
low
WHY?
1. Most men married young
2. Quebec was an agricultural
province and
needed farmers
3. French felt like second class
citizens in the
predominantly English military
4. Quebecers had little
attachment to Europe
Enlistments by Enlistments by
Region Nationalities
 Borden’s Sneaky Solution
Remember the WAR MEASURES ACT?
gives the government sweeping powers!

To win the Election Borden passed the War Time Elections

Act:
gives the vote to women with relatives fighting overseas
(promises to grant all women the right to vote if he wins),
takes the votes away from enemy aliens
AND the Military Voters Act: took the vote away from
conscientious objectors and allowed him to take their votes
and put them in any constituency that he wished
Where would he need to put those votes?
 RESULTS?
“While conscripts were not necessary to win the war, the
Canadian Corps with its four infantry divisions could not have
been sustained in the field without them. Nevertheless, the Act
came with a very high political cost. It led to the creation of
Prime Minister Borden’s Union Government and drove most of
his French-Canadian supporters into opposition. French
Canadians were seriously alienated by this attempt to enforce
their participation in what they considered a British imperial war.
More broadly, the conscription crisis bitterly divided the
country along French–English lines.” -The Canadian
Encyclopedia
 The Union Nationale 1936
The Great Darkness
The Union Nationale was formed as a French Canadian nationalist party to
represent French Canadian concerns politically. The Union Nationale was
concerned about the domination of the Quebec economy by English speaking
Capitalists, and the role they played in French unemployment in Quebec
during the depression. The party was led by Maurice Duplessis whose party
platform was a follows:
1. The Depression was the fault of English speaking business owners.
2. Communism was dangerous because this ideology wanted to overthrow
government and Catholic Church.
3. Provincial governments should have more control over immigration,
language, and education.
4. Find new markets for Quebec farm products, and build low-income
housing.
5. Police should be used to break up labour union strikes.
King called Duplessis "diabolic" and a "little Hitler" in his diary.
Corruption
Duplessis was okay with corruption to influence elections: fake electoral lists,
stuffed ballot boxes and threatening political and business opposition with
their jobs and losses of government contracts.
Counties that voted for Duplessis got their roads paved, and those that didn’t
had gravel roads.
https://www.thecanadianencyclope
dia.ca/en/article/asbestos-strike
• In 1949, Asbestos miners went on strike for better pay and working
conditions. Lasted for three months – grievances went unanswered.
• Duplessis had police violently break up the strike, and at one point a riot
broke out. Business-owners secretly worked with the Premier (less
concessions for workers).
• Dominion Textile Strike, 1946
• Asbestos Strike of 1949
• Murdochville copper mine strike, 1957

7
CONSCRIPTION AGAIN!

• At the outbreak of WWII, King had promised

that he would not implement conscription.
• Why would he do this?

• What happened in 1940 that King felt pressure to

examine his pledge to not pass conscription?
NRMA –National Resources
Mobilization Act
• King passed conscription for home defense only
• He hoped that soldiers conscripted for home
defense would volunteer to fight overseas
• Do you remember which groups of Canadians
were opposed to conscription in World War One?
• How do you think those groups would feel about
the NRMA?
Zombies…

• This was a derogatory name given to the

NRMA soldiers who refused to volunteer to
fight overseas.
• Just like the Zombies from the Hollywood
movies at the time, they were viewed as
mindless and soulless monsters
 April 27, 1942 -King holds a
plebiscite…
What is a plebiscite? A direct vote by the electorate on
an important question. Not legally binding.

Will you release me from my pledge to not pass

conscription?

Results? “Conscription if necessary, but not necessarily

conscription.” King doesn’t pass it right away because
he knows that the French Canadians are opposed and
he doesn’t want to be unpopular.
Conscription is passed…
• By 1944, why is King desperate for soldiers?
• King handled the conscription much better
than Robert Borden during WWI.
• French Canadians were not very pleased and
there were protests.
e

• The conscripted soldiers didn’t make much of

a difference in the outcome of the war
• Only 2400 conscripted Canadian soldiers will
make it to the battlefields -69 died in battle
 The Quiet Revolution (1960’s)

Began with the Liberal party; led by Jean Lesage

who defeated the Union Nationale
Was an attempt to modernise Quebec society
Government took control of education and social
programs away from the church
Gov’t attempted to control the economy by
nationalising Hydro-electric power
Desired federal funding but wanted to use it in
their own way – pension plans, student loans,
medicare 🡺
The new attitude of Quebeckers was seen in the Jean Lesage
phrase “Maitres Chez Nous” (Masters in our
own house). People begin to see themselves as
Quebecois and not Canadian.
 What does this artistic representation tell us about what type of leader

Maurice Duplessis (Le Chef) was?

• Right leaning
• Social conservative
• Pro-Business
• Favoured Roman
Catholicism
• Strong base in rural
areas
• Crushed 1949 Asbestos
Strike
 Quebec: Who had the
Best Jobs in 1961?
Professionals Managers
15% English 15.4% English
6.3% French 7.9% French

Craftsmen Labourers
23.1% English 3% English
32 % French 7.2% French
 The Rise of the FLQ
(Front de Libération du Québec)
During the Quiet Revolution there was
a rise in independence movements.
The FLQ is one of the more famous
and radical.

F.L.Q.(Front de Libération du Québec)

begin to plant bombs targeting military
establishments in the Montreal area,
and mailboxes in Westmount.

The main goal of the FLQ was to

attain independence for Quebec from
Canada through the use of violence.

Their slogan was “independence or

death” 🡺
The FLQ were Marxist Revolutionaries- FLQ bombing in 1963
the idea was to provoke the Canadian
government to react to show its true
nature to Quebecers.
 “Vive le Quebec Libre”
On July 24, 1967 at Expo 67,
President Charles De Gaulle of
France spoke in Montreal. At the
end of his speech he gave the V
sign of victory and stated “Vive
le Quebec Libre” or Long live
free Quebec.
These words had been seen
after a terrorist attack by the
FLQ
This event signaled future 🡺
trouble for English and French De Gaulle at Expo 67
Canadians
 Trudeau and Quebec
Trudeau’s strategy with Quebec was:

1. Create Official Bilingualism (formal

equality between English and
French)
2. Make all provinces equal – no
special status for Quebec
3. Multiculturalism – reaction against
biculturalism
4. Create a Charter of rights and
freedom to ensure language rights
5. Create a strong national
government and weaken the
power of provincial governments
 The October Crisis
On October 5, 1970 four men from the FLQ James Cross
abducted the British Trade commissioner James in FLQ
Cross from his Montreal home hands 🡺

For his return, the FLQ demanded the following:

1. $500 000 in ransom money
2. Transportation to Cuba FLQ Manifesto
3. Release of jailed FLQ members 🡺
4. The reading of the FLQ manifesto over national
television

On October 7, the Federal and Provincial gov’t.,

hoping to appease the FLQ, read their manifesto Reading of
on T.V. FLQ Manifesto
🡺
On Radio
Canada
Television
 Five days later the FLQ seized Quebec cabinet
minister Pierre Laporte while he played
football in his front yard with his nephew

Pierre
Laporte🡺

At this point the Premier of Quebec,

Robert Bourassa, urged the Federal
government
to invoke the War Measures Act.
Robert Bourassa 🡺
 The War Measures Act
On October 16, Pierre Trudeau declared
the War Measures Act,
which essentially took away the civil
rights of Canadians.
For two months the army was deployed
in Montreal to protect official buildings
and politicians.

What is ironic about Trudeau

declaring the War Measures
 The End of the October Crisis
The day after the declaration of the
War Measures Act, Laporte’s body
was found in the trunk of a car.

Up until this point, some high profile

Quebecois were sympathetic to the FLQ,
but with Laporte’s death, sympathy
shifted away from the FLQ
James Cross was held for almost two months.
Cross was released and his kidnappers were sent 🡺
to Cuba. Laporte’s
The FLQ cell that killed Laporte were charged body
with
kidnapping and murder.
 What happened toPaulthe
Rose
FLQ?
On March 31, 1971, Paul Rose was sentenced to life 🡺
imprisonment
for the murder of Pierre Laporte. He was granted full parole
on December 20, 1982. He died in March 2013 unrepentant
of
his crime.
Jacques Rose was acquitted of both the murder and kidnapping
of Pierre Laporte. However, he was later convicted of being an
accessory after the fact and sentenced to eight years in jail. He
was granted full parole on July 17, 1978. At the annual convention
of the Parti Quebecois (the ruling party) in December 1981,
Jacques Rose received a standing ovation. He continues
to be an active supporter of the separatist movement.

Jacques
Rose 🡺
 The Parti Quebecois
The Parti Québécois was
founded in 1968 by René
Lévesque who was the
former Liberal minister under Rene Levesque
Jean Lesage. His Movement 🡺
Souveraineté-association
joined forces with other
political groups, espousing
the independence of
Quebec, to create the Parti
Québécois.

The newly created Parti

Québécois got 24 % of the
popular vote in the elections
of 1970, 30 % in 1973, and it
came to power in 1976
 OVERVIEW OF LAWS, 1960-1978
I. FEDERAL LAWS AND INITIATIVES:

1963: Royal Commission on Bilingualism and

Biculturalism

• Launched by Prime Minister Lester Pearson

• Found that French-speakers’ opportunities outside
Quebec were limited; federal civil servants knew
little or no French – why a problem?
• Recommended making English and French both
official in Canada; Ontario and New Brunswick
should be bilingual – why?

Polarizing: English Canadians felt like impositions

thrown at them; some French Canadians felt this did
little to fix the question of Quebec’s role in Canada.

26
RivRoalry of the Ages
RR(Battle 2.0)
1969: Official Languages Act

• Passed by Prime Minister Trudeau’s

government
• French and English become
Canada’s two official languages
•
• Government services must be
provided in both languages, and all
documents must appear in both
languages
•

28
II. PROVINCIAL LAWS (IN QUEBEC)

Official Language Act (1974) – Quebec

• Bit tricky, because it has the same name as Trudeau’s

1969 law passed by Premier Robert Bourassa (Liberal)
•
• French the official language of Quebec, and all
businesses had to have a French name
• Non-English and Non-French speakers (Anglophones)
had to send their children to French schools.

• PROVISIONS:
• English-speaking students could keep going to English
schools
• Sometimes called the pre-101 Law – it set down the
groundwork for Levesque’s later Bill.

29
 Bill 101-the Charter of the
French Language -1977
-French = official language of • https://www.youtube.com/
government, courts and watch?v=8tGovX4ua38
workplaces
-all signs had to be in French
-all children attend French school,
with the exception of those who Impact? Quebec is unmistakably a
had one parent who had attended French-speaking space. While Bill 101
English school in Quebec sparked an exodus, those anglophones
who have stayed have largely adapted,
-Established the Office québécois and flourished. Those of working age tend
de la langue française (known to be at least functionally bilingual; and
colloquially as “the language younger anglo-Quebecers are increasingly
police”). attending French schools (as opposed to
French immersion), not only to perfect
their French, but also to become better
able to function fully in the majority
society. Immigrants, for their parts,
understand that learning French isn’t
• Premier Levesque (right) set down the
groundwork for a referendum in Quebec
on sovereignty-association throughout his
term in office:
• Made Quebec family law fairer for
women and children
• Farmland preservation in Quebec (to
keep agriculture at home)
• Championing supremacy of French
language in Quebec
• A provincial Quebec auto insurance

• Sovereignty-Association?
• His policies, especially Bill 101, led to a
mass exodus of Anglophones from
Quebec: in 1974, there were 600,000 in
Quebec; by the 1980s, it dropped to
94,000.
• 42 major companies also left Quebec.

31
1980 REFERENDUM ON QUEBEC:

• 20% were in the “YES” camp – who?

• 20% were in the “NO” camp – who?
•
• About 60% were in the neutral zone: “soft separatists”
and the undecided

• Results? 60% overwhelmingly voted “NO” – even

though the referendum was asking voters to give the
Quebec government permission to negotiate with
Ottawa on sovereignty-association.

• Before the referendum, Prime Minister Trudeau

promised Quebec (and all of Canada) that he would
make significant changes to the Constitution (still the
BNA Act of 1867, with tweaks) if the “NO” camp won.

33
 1980 Sovereignty Referendum
• PQ plan was to have Quebec • Results? 90% eligible
as independent state that
controlled its laws, policies and voters turned out and
taxes but was economically 60% of them voted no
linked to Canada so that
people, money, and goods • A big setback for PQ
could flow freely. • https://www.youtube.c
• Before the referendum, Prime
Minister Trudeau promised
om/watch?v=Q-mRm
Quebec (and all of Canada) 7P974E
that he would make significant *Yvettes are sexist
changes to the Constitution
(still the BNA Act of 1867, with
stereotype of meek
tweaks) if the “NO” camp won. little girls in Quebec’s
primary school
Trudeau’s goal –Charter of Rights and Freedoms
and Repatriated Constitution

• Repatriate-remove the Constitution from

any British control
• Can Federal government do this on its
own? Supreme Court’s ruling was unclear
• Trudeau’s actions were legal but
constitutional convention suggested that
the support of a substantial number of
provinces was needed
 Sticking Points?
• Amending Formula (all provinces equal
say or should larger provinces have more
say) 7 of 10 provinces representing 50%
of population
• Charter of Rights and Freedoms –would
this erode French language and culture?
• Notwithstanding clause –enables the
federal and provincial governments to
declare certain laws exempt for up to 5
years
 Kitchen Accord
• https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/e
n/article/patriation-the-constitution-comes-
home-feature

• All the provincial premiers (except

Quebec) signed the proposal-passed
through the House and was signed by the
Queen in April 1982 -Night of Long Knives
• Quebec has never signed the constitution
 Constitution & Charter of
Rights and Freedoms: 1982
Freedoms: 1982
ution & CCharter of Rights
and Freedoms: 1982

Pierre Trudeau (sitting on the left) was Canada’s Prime Minister when the
Charter was created. Quebec has still not signed as of present day.
 Quebec Issue…. still a
thing (new players)
Trudeau retires 1984 after a snowy walk.

Brian Mulroney and Lucien

Bouchard

Lévesque resigned as leader of

the Parti Québécois in 1985 due
to health reasons. He died of a
heart attack in 1987.

Jean Chretien- Liberal PM 1993

 Brian Mulroney 1984-1993
One of the main goals of
this Conservative Prime
Minister was to get
Quebec to sign the
constitution.
1987 -Meech Lake Accord
-an attempt to
decentralize the federal
government and
strengthen provincial
powers
 Meech Lake Accord
-Recognize Quebec as a distinct society
-Extend Provincial powers which included giving
provinces a formal role in choosing Senators
-Provinces could opt out of Federal programs
provided it established its own (compatible with the
national objectives of the program) and still receive
federal funding
-Changes to constitution had to have unanimous
approval of all provinces and Parliament
 Meech Lake Accord (continued)
Meeting at a government retreat north of
Ottawa, all the premiers initially agreed to the
Meech Lake Accord and had 3 years to get it
passed through their provincial legislatures
 Elijah Harper -MLA of Manitoba
-holding an eagle feather
for spiritual strength
refused to ratify the Meech
Lake Accord
https://www.youtube.com
/watch?v=4jILAU_aXZQ
-Trudeau came out of
retirement to attack it
-new provincial
governments in
Newfoundland and New
Brunswick also had serious
Results of the Meech Lake Failure?
-creation of the Bloc Quebecois -a federal party
committed Quebec separatism -party leader
Lucien Bouchard
-1992 Charlottetown Accord
-1995 Referendum
 Charlottetown Accord (1992)
• NEW ACCORD
→ consultation with public
→ aimed to be a “better version” of the Meech Lake Accord

• Proposed Changes
→ accord proposed many changes to the constitution
→ included giving provinces more power
→ recognizing Quebec as a “distinct society,”
→ recognizing Indigenous self-government.

• Charlottetown Accord decided by a national

referendum
→ all Canadians could vote → it also failed (45% Yes; 55% No)
→ reasons:
– declining popularity of Mulroney’s gov’t
– Pierre Trudeau publically against Accord

Video: Trudeau on the Charlottetown Accord

 Quebec Separatism:
1993 Election
• 1993 Federal Election
→ Due to declining popularity, Brian Mulroney
resigned in 1993
→ Kim Campbell was chosen by the Conservative Party
to be the Prime Minister
→ Conservatives suffered a big loss (left with only 2
seats in parliament; lost official party status)
→ Liberals win (Jean Chretien became PM).

● Bloc Quebecois (Separatist Party)

– Separatist Party→ becomes Official

Opposition
– Lucien Bouchard leader of BQ
– former Mulroney Cabinet Minister
– stabs Mulroney in the back
– becomes leader of Quebec Separatists
1995 Quebec Referendum
▪ 1995 - Quebec tried to separate from Canada
again

▪ This time the vote was much closer than in 1980

– 50.6% “No” vs. 49.4% “Yes”