Quebec as a nation...

At this years U of A Model Parliamnet sessions, most of question period from the Bloc (the party I belonged to) was devoted to trying to get the PM admit that quebec was a nation.

They admitted that firt Nations was a nation, but not Quebec. Before, I had not gien much thought to the issue, but over the weekend I have come to the conclusion that Quebec is a distinct nation. Quebec had differing laws than the rest of the British colonies in North America due to the Quebec Act of 1774, and after the American Revolution, was divided by the Anglo powers into Upper and Lower Canada, due to the influx of American refugees.

I am not saying that Quebec should seperate, but I think it is obvious that they are a distinct nation as compared to the majority of Canada (or at the very least, Ontario).

 

So whats so different between us and them.

 

How do you mean?

Quebec was different because the nation was founded by a different country, had different laws (even under British rule), different customs, different religion, different language (until the official languages were brought in) etc...

 

Its not even a Distinct Society. Ha-Ha.

 

Quebec has its own language, civil code, and religion.

Of course it's a nation.

 

I was making fun of Mulroney.

 

I full-heartedly agree.

Most people don't understand the history of Quebec.

 

Quebec is not its own nation, it might have it's own distinct culture, but as of now is a providence of Canada, and it actually seems providences in the Canadian federal system recieve less autonomy then US states, which in turn recieve less then other federal systems like the Swiss cantons.

 

So what if its different then us... China has to different kinds of language (but united under the same literature), We have differen religion through out canada, also the laws are not the same in every province or in ever city... I dont know how you can say quabec is its own nation. Its different but, i wouldn't say it is its own nation.

 

That is the point of the Bloc. More provincial/national autonomy and less federalism

 

Do you mean PROVINCE?

Yeah, so?

You are ignoring certain facts.

1) Quebec has an entirely different legal system. That's why lotteries in Canada are valid everywhere "but not in Quebec" and vice versa. The law system there comes from the Napoleonic code, not the English civil code.

2) Unlike ALL the other provinces, Quebec has NOT signed into the Constitution.

So, let's see. Separate race, language, culture, legal system, not part of Canada technically - yeah, that's a NATION.

There's a difference between a NATION and a COUNTRY dude.

Then again, you've no idea what a "province" is.

 

Maybe you should learn the definition of nation? Might help? Maybe?

Fucking moron.

 

Once again, fucking moron.

The "distinct culture" was referring to the failed Meech Lake Accord. Where Quebec failed to achieve "distinct culture". *Edit: Charlottetown Accord.

Nation: a sociocultural entity, made up of a group of people who identify with each other ethnically, cultrually, and linguistically. A nation may not have a government or a geographically delimited territory of its own. But many nations may exist within the political and administrative jurisdiction of a state. Canada is a multinational entity, with more than 30 First Nations and millions of Quebecois who identify with each other as nationals.

States and Provinces have different powers - which has more autonomy is debatable, and somewhat irrelevant towards the Quebec Question.

Y'all owe me $20 for the Poli Sci 101 lecture.

 

actually quebec had the distinct society clause before meech lake but a few provincial premiers voted againsts the distinct society clause there .......and as was said before ,quebec has distinct laws ........it is based on the napolean code whereas the rest of canada is under british common law .......quebec is not into the canada pension act ,they have their own and importantly the majority language in quebec is french ........it is a distinct society whether the rest of the country agrees or not but if they ever truly separate i think the rest of the country will go down the drain because the other provinces will form their own little segments .the west together ,ontario probably alone ,maritimes probably will end up american and newfoundland probably back to britain

 

and if memory serves me right they won the distinctive clause after the battle of the plains of abraham

 

I recognise the French in Canada as a distinct nation, not just the people in Quebec.

 

well actually the french speaking people of quebec don't have a monopoly on that language ........french is spoken all over canada ..........i live in new brunswick in a french community ,i read a french newspaper ,read ,write and speak french ........matter of fact the only time i use english is on the internet and when i go to the city .........quebecers are surprised when they first visit the area ........guess nobody told them that french existed outside of quebec ,,,,,,a secret their government keeps from them ???? we have lived for over 300 years here among the english and have yet to lose our native tongue ...i think that fear is spread around there that if they allow english to be used there they will lose their mother tongue ....not the case .......

 

No, they have never been a distinct society by that term.

 

I agree with you entirely Burbot. I was born and raised in Quebec and yes, the culture is very unique here. I went to Toronto last fall and I couldn't believe how different is was! Not only is it a language thing (it goes way beyond that)... Quebecers in general are very particular people... extremely open-minded, very patriotic with regards to their homeland. The whole art scene is very authentic; lately, we've been pumping out some fantastic films! Of course, I'm in Montreal, and Montreal is a cultural rainbow compared to Quebec City, which echoes French Europe very loudly. I'm split 50/50 regarding sovereignty; I can relate to the fact that Quebecers want to preserve their culture, but at the same time, being primarily anglophone in Quebec, I tend to feel it as a slight inconvenience not being able to communicate in French as confidentally as in English. It makes me feel left out in many ways. When my boyfriend got a job at Radio-Canada, we learned together that French Quebecers have many traditions that we weren't taught as anglophones. It's a tricky situation, one with many ups and downs on either side of the argument.

 

New Brunswick borders Quebec, so it's only natural that there are many French-speaking individuals there. But travel to PEI and try to spot one who isn't a Quebecois tourist. I'm not saying there are none, but English is the primary language in the other provinces. Even if French is taught outside of Quebec, I'm sure the average student doesn't practice it all that much... nowhere near as much as they would in Quebec. Again though... this isn't only a language issue... it's a cultural issue.