Mr. Kim came to Canada; he had dreams; did he realize them?

(지난 호에 이어)

 Kim has, during the long period of depanneur operation encountered a few uninvited guests, the armed robbers. Kim had heard about a Korean depanneur manager who was killed while fighting against the robber.

 Kim asked himself what should be the right way to behave when visited by the armed thief; he asked himself what Jesus would do in such as case, Kim asked God:  “My God, how should I behave toward armed robbers?. Kim thought God would tell him not to fight, give the money and pray for him so that he or she could live a normal productive life. So did Kim.

 Kim experienced the visit of the language police. But Kim wanted to know why the young French Quebecers behave the way they behaved. So he went to see Professor Hong in his university office.

 What the professor said was this. The French speaking Canadians is about 7 million people compared to 340 million English speaking North American people. Quebec is a tiny linguistic and cultural island in the powerful English-cultural Ocean.

 Professor gave Kim a lecture on the role of the French language in the history of Canada. 

 The Quebec became the colony of England since the Paris Treaty of 1763. In that year, New France ceased to exist and the Quebec people became the secondary citizen; English Canada was the master.

 The creation of the Canadian Confederation of 1867 was supposed to be the co-founded by French Canada and English Canada. In principle, both French and English languages were supposed to be the Canada’s official languages.

 However, in reality, French Canada was denied the status of equality with English Canada. French–speaking Quebecers were treated as conquered people.

 All the good jobs were monopolized by English-speaking Quebecers. Quebec was denied the benefits of industrialization, they were denied the social mobility; they had to stay at the low level of the society generation after generation. This created deep resentment of French-speaking Quebecers toward English-speaking people.

 Then, in 1960, a miracle occurred; a political savior appeared. A good-looking and good-bred politician appeared. It was Mr. Jean Lessage, a six-footer with immense political talents.

 He made a historical speech in 1960; Professor Hong was there. Mr. Lessage said: “Lets us become master of our country- Soyons maitre chez nous!” What he proposed was a bomb shell.

 He was the symbol of emerging new forces in Quebec; he was the hope for Quebecers; he was the incarnation of Quebecers dream of liberation from 200 years of domination, humiliation, desperation and endurance.

 This was how the “Big Change” began. This was the beginning of the Quiet Revolution of Quebec.

  Here is what happened. There was a little intellectual who was a famous reporter of French-network of CBC (radio-Canada). He was in Korea during the Korean War. His name was Mr. Rene Levesque. He anchored for years a TV program through which he analyzed the problems of the Quebec society and pointed put with force the urgency of social reform.

 Mr. Rene Levesque was the most talented, the most visionary, the most loved and the most persuasive leader in the history of Canada. He was also the most respected leader, because he loved the people, because he was man of integrity, because he had no personal ambition for power, because he did not become rich through politics, because he did not seek honor.

 He joined in 1960 the Quebec Liberal Party of Mr. Lessage and became the minister of natural resources. In 1962, the Liberal Party defeated the corrupted government of Maurice Duplessis and formed a government.

 The most important issue to be addressed was the status of Quebec within the Canadian Confederation. There was a big debate in 1967 among the Lessage cabinet members. Two ideologies were opposed.

 One was the view that Quebec could flourish within the Confederation regime; the other was the bold idea of independence of Quebec. The leader of the first ideology was Paul Gerin Lajoie; that of the latter ideology was Rene Levesque.

 The first ideology may be called the “ideology of improved status quo”, while the latter, the “ideology of independence”. Well, the ideology of independence lost; the Liberal Party government adopted the policy of staying within the Confederation and improving the status of Quebec.

 Mr. Levesque did quit the Liberal Party and established the Parti Quebecois-PQ Party in 1968, won the general election in 1976 but defeated in the 1980 Referendum for Quebec’s Sovereignty Association. It was reelected in 1981 to sustain power until 1984 election in which the PQ Party was defeated.

 The PQ Party went further with the Quiet Revolution of Quebec which had been initiated by the Lessage government.

 The Quiet Revolution of Quebec consisted of the democratization and professionalization of the education system, the reform of medical service insurance and social welfare system, the reform of election system and the economic miracle. Another aspect was the retreat of the Catholic Church from public policy area.

 For French Canada, the preservation of the French language is of absolute necessity for the survival of Quebec as a viable entity. The preservation of the French language allows French-speaking Quebecers to keep job and have promotion; the French language is the vehicle through which they can preserve their culture and their identity.

 To preserve the French language, the PQ government adopted the Language Charter, called Law 101. Prior to this law, the French language had been despised, ridiculed and ignored. Professor Hong himself experienced this outrageous reality.

 If one ordered something at a restaurant in French, one had to wait for longer time and the quality of waiter’s service was poor. If one ordered something in French at Eaton Store or Bay Store, one received impolite service from the sales personnel. If one was caught speaking French on St-Catherine Street, one would hear “the Frogs!” (다음 호에 계속)

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