Howard Galganov

Last updated

Howard Galganov (born February 12, 1950, in Montreal, Quebec) is a Canadian political activist and radio personality in Montreal during the late 1990s. He made headlines in Quebec for being a vocal and confrontational opponent of the Charter of the French Language and Quebec nationalism as one of the most prominent leaders of the "angryphone" movement, before moving to Ontario and criticizing official bilingualism in Canada.

Contents

Early life

Howard Galganov was born on February 12, 1950, to a poor Orthodox Jewish family. His father had served during the allied invasion of Sicily and the battle of Monte Cassino, in addition to other countries. Galganov's website says that his father was given an award by Wilhelmina of the Netherlands due to his participation in the Allied liberation of the Netherlands. [1]

Galganov reportedly had an activist history. His grandfather, a Russian Jew, came to Canada to escape communism. In the 1960s, as a member of Montreal's branch of the far-right Jewish Defense League, Galganov threw coffins on the Soviet embassy lawn in Ottawa to protest the treatment of Jewish "refuseniks". [2]

Quebec activism

By the 1990s, Howard Galganov had become an outspoken critic of the Quebec sovereignty movement and of the Canadian government for not defending the rights of English-speaking citizens living in the Canadian province of Quebec, [3] stating that banning the use of English entirely is a violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. His goals were defending the equality of all languages, laws defending bilingual equality in Canada, defence against the local unlawful banning of all English in print, as well as the freedom of the individual to choose freely for themselves. He worked to bring awareness to those outside of Quebec on perceived human rights abuses being enacted in Quebec against anglophones, as noted by both the United Nations and the Supreme Court of Canada.[ citation needed ]

After a 1995 Quebec referendum on sovereignty for the province of Quebec, Galganov founded the Quebec Political Action Committee (QPAC), serving as its president (and only member) until 2000. One of Galganov’s first prominent QPAC activities was to organize a protest at Fairview Pointe-Claire, a shopping mall, in 1996 in the predominantly anglophone West Island of Montreal to protest that retail stores were not placing any English on their commercial signs despite being allowed under the Charter of the French Language. [4] Estimated attendance at the protest varied from 500 to 5,000. [5] Galganov followed up this protest with threatened boycotts of prominent retail stores. He also protested the actions of the Office québécois de la langue française on numerous issues including when language inspectors ordered stores to remove kosher products from their shelves just before Passover because they were not labelled in the French language. [6] These activities caused a reaction among fringe Quebec nationalist groups, garnering publicity for Galganov. [7]

Later in 1996, he gave a speech at the Harvard Club of New York City, in spite of requests not to do so from federal and provincial officials concerned that it might discourage foreign investment in Canada; the speech went ahead regardless. [8] In 1997, he opened a store with perfectly equal French and English in all signage, deliberately violating the commercial sign provisions of the Charter of the French Language act in order to provoke reactionary measures and media awareness. [9]

After his QPAC activities, Galganov attempted several more politically related activities. In June 1997, he unsuccessfully ran for parliament in Mount Royal as an independent, coming in second. [10] In 1997, he started hosting an AM radio talk show on Montreal radio station CIQC-AM, first in the morning and then at noon. He was on the air for just over a year (replaced in the morning show by Montreal broadcaster Jim Duff), [11] and made efforts to help rally support for William Johnson in his run for the leadership of Alliance Quebec. He also ran for mayor of the town of Saint-Lazare, Quebec, placing third. [12]

Ontario activism

Shortly after his Saint-Lazare mayoralty campaign, he moved to Eastern Ontario. He ran as an independent candidate in the Ontario riding of Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry in the federal election of October 14, 2008, advocating an end to official bilingualism and the separation of Quebec from Canada, and finishing fourth with 5.7% of the vote. [13]

Galganov, along with Jean-Serge Brisson, a local business owner, is challenging in provincial court a regulation on mandatory bilingual signage adopted on June 16, 2008, by the township of Russell. He claims that the regulation, by making French-only or English-only signs illegal, is threatening the French language in Ontario. [14] One Galganov associate is Elizabeth Trudeau, an official spokesperson for Canadians for Language Fairness, which battles forced bilingual legislation in Canada, claiming that it elevates "French speakers to first-class status and the rest of us to second and third-class status". [14]

Related Research Articles

<span title="French-language text"><span lang="fr" style="font-style: normal;">Office québécois de la langue française</span></span> French language regulator in Quebec

The Office québécois de la langue française is a Quebec public provincial organization established on 24 March 1961, by the Liberal government of Jean Lesage. Attached to the Ministère de la Culture et des Communications(Ministry of Culture and Communications), its initial mission, defined in its report of 1 April 1964, was "to align on international French, promote good Canadianisms and fight Anglicisms ... work on the normalization of the language in Quebec and support State intervention to carry out a global language policy that would consider notably the importance of socio-economic motivations in making French the priority language in Quebec".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Bourassa</span> 20th-century Premier of Quebec

Robert Bourassa was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd premier of Quebec from 1970 to 1976 and from 1985 to 1994. A member of the Liberal Party of Quebec, he served a total of just under 15 years as premier. Bourassa's tenure was marked by major events affecting Quebec, including the October Crisis and the Meech Lake and Charlottetown Accords.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franco-Ontarians</span> Francophone resident of the Canadian province of Ontario

Franco-Ontarians are Francophone Canadians that reside in the province of Ontario. Most are French Canadians from Ontario. In 2021, according to the Government of Ontario, there were 650,000 Francophones in the province. The majority of Franco-Ontarians in the province reside in Eastern Ontario, Northeastern Ontario, and Central Ontario, although small francophone communities may be found in other regions of the province.

The Charter of the French Language, also known in English as Bill 101 or Law 101, is a law in the province of Quebec in Canada defining French, the language of the majority of the population, as the official language of the provincial government. It is the central legislative piece in Quebec's language policy, and one of the three statutory documents Quebec society bases its cohesion upon, along with the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms and the Civil Code of Quebec. The Charter also protects the Indigenous languages of Quebec.

The Official Languages Act is a Canadian law that came into force on September 9, 1969, which gives French and English equal status in the government of Canada. This makes them "official" languages, having preferred status in law over all other languages. Although the Official Languages Act is not the only piece of federal language law, it is the legislative keystone of Canada's official bilingualism. It was substantially amended in 1988. Both languages are equal in Canada's government and in all the services it controls, such as the courts.

This article presents the current language demographics of the Canadian province of Quebec.

John Paul Ludger Harney, also known as Jean-Paul Harney, was a Canadian professor and former politician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint-Lazare, Quebec</span> City in Quebec, Canada

Saint-Lazare is an off-island suburb of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, Canada in the Regional County Municipality of Vaudreuil-Soulanges.

The legal dispute over Quebec's language policy began soon after the enactment of Bill 101, establishing the Charter of the French Language, by the Parliament of Quebec in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Official bilingualism in Canada</span> Policy that the English and French languages have equal status and usage in Canadian government

The official languages of Canada are English and French, which "have equality of status and equal rights and privileges as to their use in all institutions of the Parliament and Government of Canada," according to Canada's constitution. "Official bilingualism" is the term used in Canada to collectively describe the policies, constitutional provisions, and laws that ensure legal equality of English and French in the Parliament and courts of Canada, protect the linguistic rights of English- and French-speaking minorities in different provinces, and ensure a level of government services in both languages across Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quebec Sign Language</span> Deaf sign language of francophone Canada

Quebec Sign Language is the predominant sign language of deaf communities used in francophone Canada, primarily in Quebec. Although named Quebec sign, LSQ can be found within communities in Ontario and New Brunswick as well as certain other regions across Canada. Being a member of the French Sign Language family, it is most closely related to French Sign Language (LSF), being a result of mixing between American Sign Language (ASL) and LSF. As LSQ can be found near and within francophone communities, there is a high level of borrowing of words and phrases from French, but it is far from creating a creole language. However, alongside LSQ, signed French and Pidgin LSQ French exist, where both mix LSQ and French more heavily to varying degrees.

Raymond Villeneuve is a founding member of the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ), a violent Quebec separatist movement responsible for various acts of violence in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Section 16.1 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms</span> Linguistic equality in New Brunswick

Section 16.1 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees equality between English-speaking and French-speaking residents of New Brunswick. Enacted in 1993, it is the most recent addition to the Charter.

Alliance Quebec (AQ) was a group formed in 1982 to lobby on behalf of English-speaking Quebecers in the province of Quebec, Canada. It began as an umbrella group of many English-speaking organizations and institutions in the province, with approximately 15,000 members. At its height in the mid-1980s, the group had a network of affiliated anglophone groups throughout the province. However, a prolonged decline in influence, group cohesion, membership and funding ultimately led to its closure in 2005.

William Denis Hertel Johnson, CM was a Canadian academic, journalist, and author.

Anti-Quebec sentiment is a form of prejudice which is expressed toward the government, culture, and/or the francophone people of Quebec. This prejudice must be distinguished from legitimate criticism of Quebec society or the Government of Quebec, though the question of what qualifies as legitimate criticism and mere prejudice is itself controversial. Some critics argue that allegations of Quebec bashing are sometimes used to deflect legitimate criticism of Quebec society, government, or public policies.

Guy Rivard is a former Canadian politician in the province of Quebec. Rivard served in the National Assembly of Quebec from 1985 to 1994 as a member of the Liberal Party and was a junior minister in the government of Robert Bourassa. His handling of Quebec's language laws in 1989 attracted national attention.

The Parti de la Liberté de Choix was a political party in the Canadian province of Quebec. Focused on anglophone rights issues, it ran candidates in provincial elections from 1979 to 1982.

The Rise and Fall of English Montreal is a 1993 Canadian documentary film directed by William Weintraub and produced by the National Film Board of Canada in Montreal.

English-speaking Quebecers, also known as Anglo-Quebecers, English Quebecers, or Anglophone Quebecers or simply Anglos in a Quebec context, are a linguistic minority in the francophone province of Quebec. According to the 2011 Canadian census, 599,225 people in Quebec declare English as a mother tongue. When asked, 834,950 people reported using English the most at home.

References

  1. ↑ "About Yours Truly – Galganov Dot Com". galganov.com. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  2. ↑ ^The Independent: Canada learns a new language of protest
  3. ↑ "Galganov's Anglo Rights Crusade | The Canadian Encyclopedia". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  4. ↑ Montreal Gazette (18 April 1996) Archived 20 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ World Paper (USA) (1 October 1999)
  6. ↑ B'Nai Brith Canada (1996) Archived 2012-06-03 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ↑ Mutimer, David (2002-01-01). Canadian Annual Review of Politics and Public Affairs: 1996. University of Toronto Press. ISBN   978-0-8020-3715-2.
  8. ↑ Maclean's Magazine; see also Layton-Brown, p.137
  9. ↑ McGill Daily [ permanent dead link ]
  10. ↑ Elections Canada
  11. ↑ Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (14 August 1998) Archived 7 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  12. ↑ McGill Daily (4 February 2008) [ permanent dead link ]
  13. ↑ Elections Canada
  14. 1 2 Tom Van Dusen, "Bilingual sign challenge bounced again. Galganov circulated inflammatory pamphlet",[ dead link ]La Nouvelle, March 24, 2010, retrieved April 12, 2010
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.