This article relies largely or entirely on a single source .(July 2012) |
The Rise and Fall of English Montreal | |
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Directed by | William Weintraub |
Written by | William Weintraub |
Produced by | Bill Brind |
Narrated by | Vlasta Vrána |
Cinematography | Jacques Avoine Lynda Pelley Barry Perles |
Edited by | Jeremiah Hayes |
Music by | Eldon Rathburn |
Distributed by | National Film Board of Canada |
Release date | 1993 |
Running time | 51 minutes |
Country | Canada |
Language | English |
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.
The film deals with the exodus of English-speaking Quebecers that began in the 1960s and was accelerated by the 1976 Quebec general election.
The film includes interviews with English-speaking professionals and students who are preparing to leave Montreal, joining an exodus of 300,000 [1] anglophones that left the province in the last two decades.
This exodus is reflected in over 100 English-speaking schools that have closed in recent years. The students at McGill University and Concordia University cite better work opportunities outside of the province as a reason for leaving. Frequently, the lack of a Francophone background is cited as an obstacle for anglophones, even for those who are bilingual.
Weintraub also looks at the role that the Office québécois de la langue française plays in making anglophone businesses comply with language laws, calling for the use of French language signage instead of English.
The film juxtaposes a worried minority's present position with their past in Montreal, where English-speakers once outnumbered francophones, where the mayor was English-speaking and it was difficult to be served in French in downtown department stores.
The film also addresses key moments of significance to the Anglo community in Montreal, such as the demolition of the Van Horne Mansion in 1973. Weintraub also displays the significant role that Anglo business has played in cultivating Montreal's overseas image as a "North American Paris."
As the Anglo youth leave Montreal and the elderly stay behind, the film poses questions about the future and sustainability of the Anglo community in Montreal and the province itself.
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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.
Quebec Sign Language, known in French as Langue des signes québécoise or Langue des signes du Québec (LSQ), 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.
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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.
Montreal was referred to as "Canada's Cultural Capital" by Monocle Magazine. The city is Canada's centre for French-language television productions, radio, theatre, film, multimedia, and print publishing. The Quartier Latin is a neighbourhood crowded with cafés animated by this literary and musical activity. Montreal's many cultural communities have given it a distinct local culture.
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Heather Keith, formerly known as Heather Keith-Ryan, is an anglophone rights activist from the Eastern Townships region of the Canadian province of Quebec. She has served two terms as president of the Townshippers' Association and in this capacity has opposed provincial restrictions on the use of the English language. Keith herself is fluent in English and French.
Townshippers' Association is a non-partisan, non-profit organization mandated to support the rights of English-speaking people in the historical Eastern Townships region of the Canadian province of Quebec. It is known in French as the Association des Townshippers. The association has its head office in Lennoxville and a branch office in Knowlton.
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.
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