Allison Hanes: Uniqueness in French for English Parents

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A French-only information session for parents of students with special needs attending English public schools in Quebec turned out to be the latest blow to the rights of Quebec’s anglophone community under Bill 96.

Last week, the Parents Committee Association of England hosted a webinar with Ministry of Education officials so they could explain the programming and pathways available for children with cognitive disabilities and learning challenges, including autism. A side event was held in March for parents of the French school system, led by the Federation of Parents’ Committees of Quebec.

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But when the ministry expert appeared online to address English parents, she went ahead only in french.

Katherine Korakakis, president of the EPCA, said she was stunned.

“The lady says ‘Well, the slides are going to be in English, but the presentation is going to be in French.’ And I am so surprised that I am stunned into silence. If you know me, this doesn’t happen. At first I felt embarrassed, surprised, I didn’t know what to do,” Korakakis recalled of the situation. “Then I get messages (in the chat) from parents, kind of blaming me, like ‘Oh, you said the presentation was going to be in English.’ ‘I don’t understand.’ —When will the English part start? At a certain point I have to say something. So I stop her and say, ‘Sorry, this is supposed to be in English.’ And then she says (I’m paraphrasing), ‘We would like to do it in English, but by law we can’t.’”

Korakakis wanted to avoid a scene and save the event for the parents, so after some back and forth he finally suggested jumping right into the Q&A session. This, she said, was carried out in English, without problems. The ministry official was fluent, so it’s not like there was a language barrier.

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“I felt very surprised and very sad because this is the first time something like this has happened,” said Korakakis, who has always had a good working relationship with the Ministry of Education, is perfectly bilingual and had never experienced this type of obstacle before. . .

What bothered him most was that parents were being denied the opportunity to learn about the options available to their children in the English school system.

“They are the most vulnerable parents. They are parents with special needs. They already have a lot on their shoulders,” she stated. “At the end of the day I just want to give parents information so they can make informed decisions. That’s all. “I don’t want to play a political game.”

Bill 96, which was adopted in 2022 to strengthen the protection of the French language, established new basic rules on who has the right to access public services in English, whether at the city hall or at the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec. But despite Prime Minister François Legault’s repeated assurances that the rights of English-speaking Quebecers would not be affected, especially in health care and education, there have been several unpleasant surprises.

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A son was forced to translate his father’s death certificate, issued in English by the Quebec government, into French to settle the inheritance. The Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec hanged an elderly woman, even though she was entitled to assistance in English, apparently because health insurance is not considered health care. Anglophone students who graduated from French public schools have been denied certificates of eligibility by bureaucrats who claimed they had lost their right to an English education.

Government websites include warnings about who can view content or receive public services in English. In short, these are: Quebecers who previously obtained public services in English; people who have the right to schooling in English; Indigenous and Inuit Peoples; and new immigrants who have been here less than six months. Public servants are supposed to trust the “good faith” of those seeking services in English.

But the refusal to make a presentation in English to the parents of English schoolchildren seems a flagrant contravention of the exceptions provided for in Bill 96, now renamed Bill 14. All participants in the forum would have already demonstrated their right to the services. in English when they obtained eligibility certificates for their children.

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Joe Ortona, president of the Montreal English School Board and president of the Quebec English School Boards Association, called the incident “outrageous.”

“This is exactly the opposite of what the government said the law would do. We were assured that rights holders in the English-speaking community would continue to receive government services in English,” she said. “They were parents of children in an English public school; everyone understands it. What people don’t know or care is that these people have the right to receive services in English. “These are people whose constitutionally protected rights continue to be thrown in the trash because this government completely ignores constitutional rights.”

Whether public officials have no idea how Bill 96 is supposed to be applied or feel empowered to override the rights of English speakers, Ortona called the incident “unacceptable.”

“This should never have been allowed to happen. And it is their responsibility to make sure that when they send people to provide services to the English-speaking community, they know what the rules are and they know that they are supposed to provide services in English,” Ortona said. “This government owes us an apology, and not only for this. “They owe us an apology for what they have done in the last five years.”

Speaking to reporters in Quebec City, The Minister of the French Language, Jean-François Roberge, stated His office is investigating whether House Bill 96 was interpreted correctly in this case.

“I have heard about this situation, but I don’t have all the information,” he said. “I have no comment now because I have to do more verifications.”

Education Minister Bernard Drainville’s office has not yet responded to questions from The Gazette.

But how could this be allowed? How would denying basic information in English to parents of students with special needs in English schools help protect French? If the government determines this is okay under Bill 96, then the law is a sham.

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