Racist Quebec parents reject reality

[nekokate]

Reminding them of the Christian name of where they were – on Île Jésus – a young mother yesterday urged the chairmen of Quebec's "reasonable accommodations" commission not to forget their Roman Catholic heritage. Geneviève April also had a warning for Gérard Bouchard and Charles Taylor: Don't promote the rise of Islam in Quebec, because it will erode the identity of young French Canadians like her two children, who are exposed to it at school and daycare.

"As a mother, I'm very worried," said April, 30, whose young son attends a multi-ethnic school that is 70-per-cent allophone* and where the pupils are of 45 nationalities. "Children are sponges, and if my children are taught by someone (who is Muslim), they'll start asking themselves who they are," said April, the first of two dozen people who addressed the commission yesterday in Laval.

Teachers and daycare workers in hijabs, for example, are a threat, because "children trust the people looking after them, and (wearing the hijab) is practically a kind of subversion, and I think that's deplorable and shouldn't be accepted."

Bouchard, a veteran historian and sociologist who grew up Catholic in Chicoutimi, asked April whether it's OK for parents to transmit their religion to their children. Absolutely, she replied, but "I don't want Muslim parents transmitting their religion to my children."

* In Quebec, an allophone is an immigrant whose mother tongue or home language is neither English nor French.

Montreal Gazette, 15 November 2007

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The thing that pissed me off the most about this story was the mother reportedly saying "Children are sponges, and if my children are taught by someone (who is Muslim), they'll start asking themselves who they are."

So what she's basically saying is that she wants to sheild her child from the reality of life (multiculturalism, etc.) incase the child might start thinking for itself... She'd prefer it to remain swaddled in a convenient, comforting papouse of bigotry and ignorance.

[Mandy]

Imagine the above being said in South Africa about whites not wanting non-white teachers, or Hindus not wanting Christian teachers.

Total bigotry & short sightedness .. since if this was adopted world-wide, then everyone would be a loser

[faceless]

It is just petty bollocks - I feel sorry for those kids who'd have such an idiotic parent.

[t.]

i live in quebec and can't say im surprised...

there have been a string of events such as this over the past few years

the only one i saw in the international media was this:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6316151.stm --

the little quebec village that made a 'declaration' to immigrants

[major.tom]

Thanks for the link, t.. I remember reading this story back when it happened.

My take on this is that Québec is quite insular and protectionist. They view themselves as the minority in Canada, so other minorities can just take a leap.

After the last referendum on whether Québec should separate from Canada (which the separatists very narrowly lost by a roughly 1% margin) the then leader of the Bloc Québecois Jacques Pariseau (in)famously blamed the loss on "the ethnic vote."

[nekokate]

[major.tom]

Good point, Kate. I remember that colour. I guess Crayola doesn't want black kids to use their crayons.

It's surprising how many examples of narrow-mindedness pop up when you pay close attention.

For the record, the Jacques Pariseau quote was in French, but I think it translates. He appears to include anglophones in this category.

The complete speech can be found here: http://www.geocities.com/capitolhill/lobby/4652/parizeau.html