Geekman's World: Quebec Sovreignty

Like most English-speaking Canadians, I've had mixed feelings about Quebec sovereignty over the years. As a patriotic Canadian, I'm furious that anyone would want to break up my country, with its rich bilingual culture and history. Jacques Parizeau's infamous drunken referendum concession speech about "money and the ethnic vote" seriously put me off any sort of concessions to Quebec.

However, I also have evolved a sense in the last decade that Quebecois culture is indeed unique and distinct from the rest of Canada. In stark contrast to his predecessors, I admire Giles Duceppe greatly as a politician and a speaker. At my most optimistic moments, I would love to see a modification of our constitution which would sort of allow Quebec to operate as a "special administrative region": having more autonomy than a province, but still an integral part of Canada.

Then I hear about the cancellation of a reenactment of the Battle of the Plains of Abraham. This was (as you Canadians clearly know, RIGHT?) the historic battle where General Montcalm's New France Militia forces were defeated by the British army under the command of General Wolfe. Both commanders were killed in battle.

When the reenactment was announced, a small and vocal minority reacted quickly. Threats of violence were leveled. Sovereigntist protesters claimed that re-enacting the battle would bring up "to many painful memories". What fucking memories? You weren't even BORN yet? Your grandparents probably weren't even born yet!

Historical reenactment is a form of education. There's no political spin. You re-enact events of history as recorded, it's up to the audience to make up their own minds how they feel about those events. One could make the argument that seeing the reenacted New France Militia defeated at the hands of the British could help create a whole new generation of sovereigntists. The key to well-formed political opinions is education, not ignorance.

This is the worst kind of politics: the "us and them" kind. It could be terrorists, witches, or English people, it makes no difference: "THEY want to destroy OUR way of life and the only way to save OURselves is to stop THEM first."

This battle happened 250 ago. It would have been a great opportunity to examine the history that lead us to where we are today. Instead, a bunch of whiners want to make it a chip on their shoulders.

It was 250 years ago. GET OVER IT.

Read Champlains Dream by David Hackett Fischer. You may feel differently. The way the British and their American recruits acted during the conquest was dreadful Basically they destroyed everything they possibly could as they did in Nova Scotia, forcing those people to relocate to Louisianna. It's kind of the way your oma felt about Germans years after WWll. Sometimes the scars never go away.

Such a shame that the vocal minority ruins that event for all. I had a brilliant opportunity many years agon to participate in this event on a family trip to Qubec city. It wasn't a politically charged event then even in the wake of a then recent referendum vote and the whole meech(sp?) lake fiasco. I don't see how reinacting the fall of one of north america's most famous walled cities could be poliitcal in nature. People are stupid :-P

Mom. That's totally different. Oma lived through starvation. The Quebecois lost a battle. And anyone who was around to experience the pains of integration is long, LONG dead.

I can understand if one person can't forgive based on their own personal experiences. But nations and cultures need to reconcile their violent pasts with present society. It is stupid and childish to hold on to grudges that are hundreds of years old. Otherwise, there will never any peace in Israel, Northern Ireland, Africa, etcetera.

People need to lay down their grudges and focus on how to build a better, pluralistic future.

They starved and had their homes and farms destroyed, their animals killed. The only reason they weren't deported like the Acadians was that they made it a condition of surrender that they wouldn't be and Wolfe was dead. Family stories are passed down from generation to generation.
Sure it would be nice if people just forgot unfortunately sometimes they don't, especially when it was done with so much malice. I tend to agree with you but I know it's just not that easy.

You are completely missing the point. There is not one person alive in Quebec today who went through that experience.

Personal experiences are one thing. Harboring ancient historical grudges is quite another.