:
Mr. Chair, committee members, first please allow me to thank you for the invitation to discuss the important focus that will be placed on linguistic duality during the planning for the celebrations of the 150th anniversary of Confederation in 2017. As a Franco-Ontarian, who was born and raised in Sudbury, Ontario, this topic is very important to me personally.
As you know, the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage recently addressed the issue of Canada's 150th anniversary in 2017. Minister Moore had the opportunity to discuss this topic with them. Although we are in the preliminary stages of planning for the activities and initiatives to mark Canada's 150th anniversary in 2017, we know that many Canadians across the country have already begun planning initiatives in their own communities.
[English]
Many Canadians have fond memories of Canada's centennial in 1967. They were fortunate to have experienced this landmark year in Canada's history. Those centennial celebrations that ignited the imaginations of so many Canadians were held on the eve of significant changes that led to the vibrant Canada we share today.
[Translation]
Canada's centennial was celebrated two years before the Official Languages Act of 1969, but even then, strides were being made towards linguistic duality, with the appointment of a francophone deputy commissioner for the Centennial Commission, and an official centennial song in both French and English. These measures foreshadowed the significant changes to come.
In fact, Canada has changed considerably since 1967. From the adoption of the first Official Languages Act and its 1988 revision to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, linguistic duality is entrenched in modern Canadian society. Today, official language minority communities have a network of schools throughout the country, as well as diverse institutions that support them in their development and growth.
Official language minority communities have had to work hard, and continue to do so, to ensure their place in Canadian society. The Department of Canadian Heritage recognizes and supports this effort when planning major events and commemorations. We have developed and refined several best practices that will be a cornerstone of the plans for the celebrations for the 150th anniversary of Canada.
In 2008, the country celebrated the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City. Through these celebrations, Canadians gained a better knowledge of the origins of our country. Canadians from the two linguistic communities throughout the country celebrated the event. For example, nearly halfway across the country in Alberta, the 400th anniversary of Quebec City was a theme during the 2008 Calgary Stampede.
[English]
To ensure a balanced perspective, recognition of the contribution of the anglophone communities in the history of Quebec City was also an integral part of the programming of the 400th anniversary. As such, Quebec's 400th Anniversary Society included a representative from the anglophone community on its board of directors.
[Translation]
The 400th not only celebrated the city of Quebec and its people, but it also became a rallying point for Canadian francophone communities. On August 15, 2008, during the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City celebrations, the "Grand Tintamarre Acadian" took to the streets of Quebec City. Throughout the day, the dynamism and vitality of the Acadian people were celebrated both in Quebec and, of course, throughout l'Acadie. These celebrations also included the Francodôme, which highlighted the creators and artists from francophone and Acadian communities in Quebec and across Canada.
[English]
Another example of the department's commitment to linguistic duality was the Vancouver 2010 games. During the Olympic torch relay, Canadians from across the country showed their pride like never before by participating in festivities surrounding the torch relay in their communities.
[Translation]
Francophone and Acadian communities across the country contributed to the planning of the torch relay and had the opportunity to showcase their dynamic culture throughout. These communities had a strong presence over the course of the 45,000 kilometre journey.
[English]
When appeared before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage last October, he highlighted the success of la Place de la Francophonie during the Vancouver 2010 games. The Government of Canada provided significant support to showcase the richness and diversity of the French language and francophone culture in Canada to the rest of the world.
Celebrations such as the 400th anniversary of Quebec City, and the Olympic and Paralympic games in Vancouver, contributed to a greater appreciation, both by Canadians and by our international visitors, of our history, our landscape, our culture, our communities, and the richness of our linguistic duality. This was not accomplished by the Government of Canada's grants or contributions alone, but in conjunction with the support and leadership from community organizers who worked closely with official language minority communities.
[Translation]
Canadians' enthusiasm for celebrations and commemorations has not dimmed and will, we hope, gradually increase as we approach 2017.
[English]
Between 2012 and 2017, we will mark a number of anniversaries that will help build a sense of pride and belonging for all Canadians. They will highlight our achievements, both nationally and internationally. These milestones commemorate events and people who have contributed significantly to the development of our country and will help unite us in our collective struggle for the advancement of causes at the core of our common values.
[Translation]
In planning for the 150th anniversary of Canada's Confederation and other events on the road to 2017, we will build on past experiences, implementing proven best practices. The road to 2017 also offers a unique opportunity to highlight the significant contributions of francophones towards making Canada the country it has become. Milestone anniversaries marked over the coming five years will be used to build a shared sense of pride among Quebeckers and all Canadians.
[English]
The contributions of Sir John A. Macdonald, for example, are well known and are commemorated by many organizations across Canada. But we will also have the opportunity to commemorate his Quebec contemporaries, such as Sir George-Étienne Cartier and Louis-Hippolyte LaFontaine.
In addition, in 2015 Canada will host the Pan American and Parapan American games in Toronto. The federal government is a leading partner. The organizing committee began several years ago to work with the Franco-Ontarian community, among others, to ensure that the games reflect Canada's linguistic duality.
[Translation]
Past events such as the 400th anniversary of Quebec City and the Vancouver 2010 Games have taught us much within the department, but they have also built a strong capacity among the representatives of official language communities. I am confident that we will once again work in partnership to build strategic alliances to implement initiatives that support the recognition and celebration of Canada's linguistic duality.
Mr. Racine and I will gladly answer your questions. Thank you for providing me with this opportunity to share my thoughts with you today.
I would like to thank the representatives from Canadian Heritage for being here. We are pleased to welcome you to the Standing Committee on Official Languages.
I am reminded of all the discussions we had for the 2010 Olympic Games. I remember that we heard from a lot of witnesses about this. We could say that good things were done, but we could also say that, in some cases, we very clearly missed the mark.
We will mainly discuss the two official languages here because this is the Standing Committee on Official Languages.
Will our francophones be singing in English or in French? That's what happened during the last Olympic Games. When it came to French, people defended it by saying that a francophone had been asked to sing. But an English song was chosen. However, I didn't see many anglophones choosing to sing songs in French.
What will Canadian Heritage's involvement be with respect to looking at the schedule for such events? There are Métis, first nations and different groups. They shouldn't just be invited for the opening and then forgotten. We're talking about celebrating the 150th anniversary of Confederation. I'm sure Mr. Dion will speak about it. You are talking about Canada's birthday, but I don't think it's Canada's birthday. In our documents, we are really talking about Confederation. There is a difference between the two.
I would like to hear what you have to say about that. Our committee worked very hard at that time. We had even invited the president of the organizing committee for the Vancouver Olympic Games. Despite that, we really missed the boat. When the celebration began, we realized that we had lost.
What are Canadian Heritage's intentions in this matter?
:
Thank you very much for your question.
First of all, if we look at the Olympic Games as a whole, even the Grand Témoin who was at the Games and the Commissioner of Official Languages said that these were the most bilingual games that had been held in the history of the Olympic Games. We're talking about the presentation of the games. The same thing is true of the torch relays where francophone groups were involved in the community. Each of the 130 communities visited by the relay had a representative from the official language minority community on the committee. A lot of local talent was on display. Good practices were developed. A great deal of effort was made during the games to ensure that signage, announcements and most of the activities relating to the various events were done perfectly in both official languages.
The opening ceremony was a different matter. There was a contribution agreement with some obligations. The Commissioner of Official Languages reported on it and made recommendations that we have implemented. The minister gave a ruling at the time. Unfortunately, with respect to the Olympic Games, there were last minute changes that were not communicated to the department and that meant that the French components that should have been there were not.
However, we can talk about the 150th anniversary of Confederation and some events that we are organizing across the country on behalf of the government. I will give the example of the war of 1812, which is a commemoration. We can see what was done with respect to the consultations with the official language minority communities. This is the case in Ontario and in Quebec, with the English language community there, including—to also answer your question, Mr. Godin—first nations groups and groups from various communities to ensure they are better integrated. There are lessons that we learned and lessons that we are implementing when we are developing projects, during discussions and during meetings. We made commitments to official language communities to have discussions and to see what we can put into place to ensure that they are reflected in the events.
Ms. Bourget, Mr. Racine, thank you for being here and sharing your expertise with us.
The commemoration of the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation will no doubt be exceptional for people of our generation, perhaps even two or three generations. Taking part in this type of celebration is a special opportunity.
I think it will also be a special opportunity to promote our linguistic duality and enable all our communities to be involved in this celebration. We need our minority communities to show Canada's character and our core identity. You mentioned that they had been invited to propose various projects. Has this process already started, or will it pick up steam in 2013 to allow people to get involved, to have their say and present their initiatives?
No doubt there will be projects in large cities, but the local projects are also important. It is important to remember the small communities that built our country. Think about the rural regions that fed our country in its early years. It's important because we have deep roots there.
In my riding, some areas are 375 or almost 400 years old. These regions also have treasures. How can we integrate all of that into the celebrations?
Fortunately—and it's good to see what is going on—there is already an enormous amount of interest in the 150th anniversary. We are seeing groups form, particularly imagiNation 150, from Calgary. These people have set up a website and a users guide, which is accessible in French and English, to all the small communities across the country. These people explain how to organize a local community and what people are doing.
Radio-Canada will start its consultations. Several other groups, particularly the national capital commissions network, have held consultations in a number of regions in the country. People are forming groups on a daily basis. Some have already sent us project requests. I would say that interest will basically increase.
The minister told the committee that the communities are going to decide what celebrations they want to hold, how they will locally celebrate the historic aspects, the figures, the local heroes, the culture and the linguistic diversity.
We are just starting out, but I am sure that, between now and 2017, Canadians are going to propose a very long list of activities and initiatives. I hope that this will be contagious and that people will want to celebrate this anniversary and get involved.
Denis, do you want to add anything?
:
You understand that I prefer to speak to the people who are really doing things. If I go back to your presentation, Ms. Bourget, I am both reassured and concerned. I'm reassured because you told us from the start that this is important to you. You are a Franco-Ontarian. You lived in Sudbury and this is something that you do not want to fail. That is very reassuring.
I am also concerned because I would have liked you to have said from the start that there were failures in the past and that you are going to learn from them. But your presentation doesn't mention that. You said this only when you responded to Mr. Godin. If we look at the failures closely, they really tarnished the good things. That is the problem. In our country, in Canada, symbols are extremely valuable.
The mayor of Quebec, the premier of Quebec and a number of other important people in the Canadian francophone community said that we failed in the opening ceremony. That is what people remember today. As for the good things, we need to remember that a lot of effort was made to have more bilingualism and that almost one volunteer in five could speak French. It is important to remember that, but the opening ceremony made a mess of things. And the reaction of other people also made a mess of things.
When David Atkins, the organizer, said that he was Australian, that he didn't understand what was going on and that we could never satisfy the Quebeckers, that just added insult to injury.
I don't know if you read the book by Mr. Furlong, but it is extremely dreadful. He wrote that he did not understand why that guy wasn't happy that his song was used. That guy is Gilles Vigneault. You really have to be ignorant of Canadian political history not to know that Gilles Vigneault doesn't like it when his songs are used to celebrate Canada. It's incredible. He wrote this in his book.
There was a very serious disagreement with Mr. Charest. Mr. Charest made a speech, and Mr. Furlong did not put his headset on to listen to Mr. Charest's speech. Seeing that, the francophone journalists obviously asked Mr. Furlong questions in French. In his book, he said that he was insulted by that. I found it insulting that he didn't listen to my premier if he was unable to understand directly. That is the type of thing that needs to be avoided at all costs. It is very difficult to predict everything that may happen, but I would like to feel that this concerns you and that you are determined to manage the symbols correctly, starting with the name of the event. Calling it the 150th anniversary of Canada is an insult to our history.
When I was young, in 1967, we celebrated Confederation. I was taught that my country had a long history that had led to Confederation. The first prime minister of Canada, you just mentioned him, was Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine, in 1848. He risked his life to become prime minister of Canada. He faced the Orangemen who straight out wanted to kill him. This is our history. You can't just set it aside.
During the Olympics, Donald Sutherland—one of our greatest actors—read one of our most famous poems, Hymne au Nord by François-Xavier Garneau, but he read it in English. Why do such a thing? The poetry doesn't translate well. Since we're talking about François-Xavier Garneau, if 1867 is the start of our country, how did he write Histoire du Canada depuis sa découverte jusqu'à nos jours in 1845?
You see, you have to be careful with the symbols. That was my comment.
:
My thanks to the witnesses for being here.
The Expo 67 experience, one year before I came to Canada, remains a great experience for me. I kept going to Terre de Hommes, Man and his World, afterwards.
In much of the testimony we have heard, we have been told time and time again that ideas should come from communities. I think that is really important for the 150 th anniversary. But, since 1967, there have been a number of changes in Canada. Some for better, some for worse. The monarchy does not go over very well in Quebec, for example.
[English]
What do you envision doing to create a situation wherein Quebec will want to be part of this, will feel invited into this process and into the celebration? The acknowledgement of our histories and of our working together is something that is very important.
What could be done by the ministry to help promote the celebration in Quebec?
:
It was interesting to hear the discussion between Mr. Dion and the chair on Monsieur Borden and then Monsieur LaFontaine and Mr. Brown. I think Quebec and francophones across the country have a very rich history and influence in the building of our nation.
What we've learned through the 400th anniversary or many other anniversaries is not for us.... And when you say “grassroots”, you're right. Stories come from people. Events come from people.
If we want them to resonate, the way to do it is to ask people who live in Quebec, for example, who are the heroes? What are the stories that have a lot of meaning and history? We talk about Louis-Hippolyte LaFontaine, and George-Étienne Cartier; they're important to our history. Then there are the characters, historical figures, on the anglophone side who have as much relevance.
So you want to do programming or events that will resonate and that have meaning for citizens. Often what we find is that when we consult with the community groups and when we involve them at the outset, they help define what it is that should be celebrated. So you can get that engagement from it.
When we did 1812, we did not think there were certain areas in Quebec, à l'école et ailleurs, where it had resonance for certain citizens. So we sat down with the anglophone community in Quebec and asked what we could do to make these celebrations relevant to them.
I think with the 150th anniversary, we must have that same attitude. There are hundreds of thousands of stories in this country, and some groups might want to celebrate. One of the committee members was mentioning some artifacts and wonderful findings in their community. I think it's an occasion for citizens to tailor the celebrations to local heroes and broad national ones, but hopefully we'll have a myriad of good stories and history to reflect.
:
Thank you very much for being here today.
I had a couple of questions leading from what Mr. Benskin has just said. Certainly in western Canada there is a lack of understanding of how important the francophones have been in nurturing Canada. I say that sincerely, because we tend to forget that everything moved from east to west. It was the west that slowly came in to Canada.
I give the examples of such places as St. Paul, Alberta, and Maillardville, or now Coquitlam, which hosts 13,000 francophones in its community and has several events every year. It was established back in 1909.
But more so I think of the Saskatchewan farming community, which we tend to forget is highly populated by francophones. If it weren't for them, maybe a lot of the smaller communities in Saskatchewan wouldn't be where they are today. Gravelbourg, Saskatchewan, had I believe the first French school district outside of Quebec, which is still established today.
I'm wondering how we are going to go about explaining those stories of the small towns in Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia that are going to show the importance of the francophone influence across Canada.
:
Those are wonderful anecdotes of those communities.
I think there are many ways to highlight those communities and the richness they bring. Fortunately, and that's without government intervention, of course, we will have programming to support local groups as we do through our building communities through arts program and celebrate Canada that, as I've said, will be themed to help support.
We do strategic alliances with historical institutions to help develop pedagogical material for the schools, and we work with the NFB and various institutions that are tremendously talented and great at making this material available. We're fortunate we live in a era of social media where, through Facebook or other mechanisms, or Google, people can exchange stories and information, and build narratives. I think there are tremendous opportunities. Right now if we all let our imaginations go, we could think up so many wonderful things.
We have our official languages program, as I mentioned. We have various other programs in the department. I think as citizens in those communities develop these stories and want to highlight and celebrate them, it will start to form.
Thank you for your presentation, Ms. Bourget and Mr. Racine. It is interesting to hear about the first steps in the planning of the 150th anniversary of Confederation.
I would like to thank my colleague Mr. Benskin for his comments on the broad themes. That was one of my concerns, actually. In your comments, you mentioned Lacolle, which ties in with my concerns a little.
I understand that these celebrations are trying to unite Canadians. But still, some historical events and figures are perhaps a little more controversial, depending on the community where one lives.
Take Louis-Joseph Papineau, for example. He is always mentioned in the same breath as rebellions. Perhaps his name has a more sovereignist connotation in Quebec. But it is all about the 1837 rebellions that were also happening in Upper Canada at the same time and that constituted the first steps towards responsible government. I am also thinking about Louis Riel, who is a major symbol for the Métis community, but who is possibly perceived differently elsewhere, despite the recent pardon that Canada has granted.
How will those events be incorporated? Will you be able to paint a true picture of our history? Have you given any thought to that? How do you see it fitting into the celebrations?
:
I am happy that you brought up that point. Earlier, I mentioned consultations that other organizations are conducting. Volunteer Canada is consulting Canadians about the 150
th anniversary.
In terms of community initiatives, I agree with everything you say about volunteers. Without the support of thousands of people, it would be difficult, of course. We saw that with the 2012 Olympic torch relay. We see it in all the events we hold. There are even thousands of volunteers for Canada Day on Parliament Hill each year. They really make the difference. They help in defining the scope of the activity; they think of things to be done or people to be involved that we would not have thought of.
When we look at the demographics of volunteers, we see that we need a renewal and a way to get young people participating. Otherwise, the people sitting on the committees as volunteers will have the same colour hair as I do, or as Mr. Dion does, since I dye mine.
Voices: Oh, oh!
Ms. Nicole Bourget: It is important to reinvigorate the movement. It is important to get the country volunteering for all kinds of activities. It is certainly important for the 150th anniversary.
:
We hope so. I believe that everyone would be happy to know that corporations and Canadians in general are investing in their communities in order to get projects done.
Additionally, even though these may not be direct investments, some large Canadian institutions are celebrating important anniversaries in the same year as the 150th anniversary of Confederation. The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, just as one example, is celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2017. I assume that it will hold some activities to celebrate that major point in its history.
We can only encourage Canadians to come together and to make a contribution to their communities. We can only encourage people to make that kind of gift, whether through contributing to events or through legacies.
As always, another ingredient is very helpful–the fact that people give their time and their money. As far as I know, the government will not be organizing any formal fundraising so that Canadians can contribute, but we will never discourage people from getting involved and making things happen in their own communities.
I would like to quickly go back to Mr. Gourde's comments.
He was talking about people complaining. He also said that they should either put up or shut up. That comes a little close to home for me.
If what he says is the case, I do not know why we are having a meeting of the Standing Committee on Official Languages today. Here is one of the reasons. We have said that we want to make sure that some things happen or do not happen. He used to say that we must not miss the boat. If you do not complain, you do not get anywhere. People have good reasons to complain. Some things have not been done, in fact.
I personally had cause for complaint when Radio-Canada showed the plane rather than the torch. It was insulting to see the way in which francophones were treated. It was annoying to see how such an important event was covered. That must never, ever happen again. As Mr. Dion said earlier, sometimes the little things cause the most harm and cause beautiful things to break. I can never say that enough.
Do the contribution agreements that you are going to draw up have provisions about bilingualism? If so, are you going to be able to share them with members of the committee so that we can follow up to make sure that it is done properly?
:
Thank you once more, Mr. Chair.
I appreciate the comments from both of you, that you are planning and getting all kinds of ideas organized. But, following on from Mr. Godin's point, I do realize that we now have different tools, like Facebook, on which we can keep the memories of all the events. It was not available at the time. So it is a new time, a new century, with everything that entails.
In terms of including young people, you have already discussed using Facebook and social media. I hope that, during your planning process, you will remember young people of all ages. I remember the time very clearly when I was younger, very young. It was not just Expo, because, since it was held in Montreal, it was not accessible to all Canadians. However, I remember celebrations at school, with little books, and physical activities that were part of the process of celebration and were also good for the health. Things like that.
So there are a lot of possibilities. Perhaps Facebook is not perfect, or even good for very young people. But, in my opinion, it is very important to include young people of all ages because we are all Canadians.
:
Thank you. I will use my five minutes.
It seems very important to me that in this list, you also keep in mind the need to respect Canada's linguistic duality. If there are failures, even if you pull out all the stops in 2017 for the 150th anniversary of Confederation, the atmosphere would already be ruined. So, I presume that you are well aware of that.
I would now like to go back to Mr. Gourde's comment. Mr. Gourde pointed out that there are bellyachers who complain about everything, all the time. That is true. There always are, but it doesn't mean that sometimes they aren't right.
As I listen to Ms. Michaud and Mr. Dionne Labelle, what worries me is that they are echoing a generally held view that exists outside of the francophone world. It is also present among anglophones. I know that you are public servants and that this is a very political question, but we need to see how to correct things. I am concerned.
I think 1812 should indeed be commemorated. I think that it was an important event and in any case, by nature, I am always in favour of commemorating historical events. That was an important moment. The Americans did indeed want to conquer Canada to punish the British for all of the irritants they imposed on them at the time. They did not succeed in conquering Canada, and we had to talk about it.
However, something did not quite work. You may not agree, but I saw it on the ground. It just didn't work. People complained about seeing publicity about 1812 during the Olympics. They could not see what war had to do with the Olympics. They had comments along those lines. The transplant did not take. It remained a government effort.
I would have one suggestion to make. Would there be some way of showcasing someone besides the minister, because the minister's credibility as a historian is rather weak; perhaps some people who have expertise in the area and could have some credibility? I am thinking of historians. They would not necessarily try to put today's attitudes into the minds of the people of that time. That was to some extent the feeling people had given the government's approach. That is unfortunate, because I do think that 1812 could have captivated the population more.
You will not agree with me. You are going to tell me that there are a lot of indications that this did captivate the population, but I will not believe you. As a politician who travels across the country, I can tell you that this did not work in any province I went to. It continued to be perceived as a government effort. Moreover, governments in Canada are never as popular as they are unpopular. They are always more unpopular than popular. There are always more people against them than for them, even when they have a majority. The very last thing to do, with celebrations of this type, is to identify them with the government and with the political party in power and its views. To summarize, there is certainly something politicians need to do.
On your side, you must be aware of that because otherwise, you are going to lose a lot of players. You will have to be very proactive to reach people again after that.