Fariha Naqvi-Mohamed: The divisive comments follow the first divisive mandate

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Yet another election campaign, yet another round of whistle-blowing politics, division, and us-versus-them rhetoric. Now we have the leader of the Coalition Avenir Québec party, outgoing Prime Minister François Legault, making divisive comments about immigration, its place in our society, and what it means to have “social and national cohesion” in Quebec.

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The irony is that his divisive comments, which last week drew the ire of many Quebecers and political opponents, come as our province faces significant job shortages in many sectors. Retiring baby boomers, insufficient births to support our population, and lack of immigration are key factors.

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And, of course, labor shortages in the industry are far from the only concern. One would think that as we emerge from a global pandemic with our health care system in shambles, Legault might have other things to prioritize.

Speaking of healthcare, for anyone visiting a medical center or hospital in the province, take a look around who is working there, from PABs to other hospital staff, administrators, nurses, and doctors. There’s a good chance it looks like the United Nations. Not a few are immigrants, and for those who are not, at some point or another (unless they are indigenous), their ancestors migrated from other places. Not everyone spoke French when they arrived. Is he really the one Legault wants to alienate? Without them and future immigrants, what would happen to the state of our health care, our economy, and our province? What happens when immigration from non-francophone majority countries is reduced or stopped altogether?

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I am a fiercely proud Muslim Canadian woman born in Quebec who has always considered herself part of the “we”. Being treated as some sort of threat is confusing, to say the least.

Liberal leader Dominique Anglade responded to Legault by addressing how Quebec was built, by people from different countries, who immigrated here and made it the province it is today. He went on to contrast his focus on inclusion with Legault’s tendency to divide and exclude.

As this election campaign unfolds and issues are debated, we also have an opportunity to hear what other party leaders in the field are saying.

Québec Solidaire co-spokesman Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, for example, whose party supports a larger number of immigrants, said Quebecers are a welcoming people who want to hear immigration talked about in a positive way.

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Even Éric Duhaime, leader of the Quebec Conservative Party and a supporter of Bill 21, which in effect discriminates against religious minorities, commented that Legault is in no position to talk about social cohesion after having divided Quebecers on many issues.

While I recognize that as things stand today, Legault and the CAQ are well on their way to securing a second term, I would be foolish to ignore what has been done under the first. One of the first bills passed by this administration, Bill 9, authorized the destruction of up to 18,000 immigration files, affecting approximately 40,000 potential immigrants, many from French-speaking countries in North Africa. This was a very disrespectful, even cruel way of treating people who are looking to come here and contribute to our economy. Shortly afterward, during a visit to Europe, Legault told a reporter that he wanted to welcome more immigrants from France.

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Between Bill 9, Bill 21, and now Bill 96, Legault has seemed indifferent to the impacts of his policies on people from backgrounds other than his own. In 2019, the CAQ changed the name of the Ministry of Immigration, Inclusion and Diversity to the Ministry of Immigration, Francisaton and Integration.

This is a far cry from the Quebec and Canada I grew up in. I can’t help but wonder what kind of Quebec my children will face after Legault is done with this province.

Fariha Naqvi-Mohamed is the founder and editor-in-chief of CanadianMomEh.coma lifestyle blog.

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