Latest news with #Québécois
Montreal Gazette
5 days ago
- Politics
- Montreal Gazette
Opinion: We're unlikely partners with a shared vision of a better Quebec
Op Eds We are unlikely partners. But shared history has brought us together, and a desire to make some history keeps us working together to express a common and powerful desire for a better Quebec. The Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois and TALQ (formerly the Quebec Community Groups Network) have been engaging over the past several months, in positive, constructive ways, about how we can, together, build some important bridges and light a path to greater understanding and unity in our wonderful, shared province/nation. It is worth noting that those talks also occurred recently in a convivial dinner on May 19, the Journée nationale des Patriotes. It was a nod to the publicly expressed will of former QCGN president Marlene Jennings, who in a 2023 column in The Gazette argued that National Patriots Day should be more inclusive and refer more fully to the participation of anglophones in the events leading to the 1837-1838 uprising. We agreed that the English-speaking community of today is not the enemy many Québécois still believe it to be. Along with that, we reiterate what we have been saying for many years: The English-speaking community of Quebec is not in itself an existential threat to French in Quebec. At the same time, the anglophones among us need to recognize more fully that their fellow Québécois whose mother tongue is French don't lie awake at night trying to figure out ways to suppress them, their institutions and their constitutional rights. Many of those institutions, by the way, such as hospitals, CEGEPs and universities, serve all Quebecers, regardless of their language. We understand and agree that threats to the French language are serious — but they are more continental or global in origin. They are found in the powerful magnet of American culture — film, television, music, social networks — and its pervasive and seductive presence around the world. We have a shared interest in making our own cultural production easier to discover and to understand, and in so doing contribute to worldwide diversity. We must not make English-speaking Québécois the convenient scapegoat of this difficult problem. We work better as allies to vigorously protect and promote the fundamental language of Quebec, which, we both agree, is French. We both understand and agree that expending more energy on ancient grievances — on either side — is not something that will move us forward. This fledgling collaboration is a leap of faith (if we can say that in a secular society) — c'est un beau risque, for both of us. There are some essential things on which we don't and won't agree. We know this, and we respect each other enough not to try to change hearts and minds. But we can and do agree on the need to recognize and respect each other as fellow, equal citizens with far more in common than we often think. With more shared history than is usually taught or acknowledged, with more shared passion for this special place in the world than many of us realize. Late last year, the outgoing Commissioner of Official Languages, Raymond Théberge, produced a report on this very subject, and pointed out in some detail just how well individual English- and French-speaking Quebecers get along on a daily basis, as they share common concerns, values, interests and needs. Think about it: We wait for the same hours and hours in the emergency room; we drive the same rutted roads; our children go to the same crumbling schools; we both cheer loudly for les Canadiens; and we both take joy from a walk in the woods in Montreal or Les Cantons-de-l'Est. We curse the same snow plows, complain about the same price increases at the SAQ or in the Hydro-Québec bill. We share so many elements of our lives in exactly the same way. We are Quebecers. Nous sommes des Québécois. There are lessons here for us all. Having the courage to work together despite a lengthy and turbulent history is an enormous first step. We are immensely proud to be taking it. This is what happens when we talk. We begin to understand each other more fully, and then we begin to realize we are stronger together than we are as adversaries. Frédéric Lapointe is president of le Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois. Eva Ludvig is president of TALQ (formerly the Quebec Community Groups Network).
Ottawa Citizen
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Ottawa Citizen
Kelly: Revered Quebec singer Serge Fiori was loved by both solitudes
Article content He didn't write all that much music in the 40-plus years since L'Heptade, but when he did, like for his very good solo album from 2014, it was as great as ever and became a huge hit. Article content After he died on June 24, the day of La Fête de la Saint-Jean, so many online were talking about the heavy symbolism of him leaving us on Quebec's national holiday. He was as loved as any contemporary Québécois artist and was a tireless defender of the French language and culture here right up to the end of his life. Article content Given all that, it's quite the rich irony that the local French-language music biz here was initially cool to Harmonium. I've met and interviewed Fiori many times over the years and he often told the story of how French radio in Montreal wasn't into the band in the early days. The first station to play Pour un instant was CHOM, and because of that Fiori always had a soft spot for the anglo classic-rock station. Article content Article content The band also signed with a Toronto-based disco label, rather than with any of the Montreal record companies. They often toured Canada to packed venues and even played throughout California, opening for Supertramp. Article content Article content Article content I asked him how it was that English-Canadians were so into Harmonium. Article content 'I don't know, but it was the first time a (Quebec) band was going there, all through Canada, with nights and nights booked in every city,' Fiori said. 'You'd go on stage and there's like 3,000 people at the Orpheum in Vancouver. And they sing the words in French, and that's very rare.' Article content The record company CBS offered to pay him to re-record the Harmonium songs in the language of Lennon and he turned them down. That day in the fall of 2022, I asked him why he said 'no'. Article content Article content 'Cause I'm nuts,' he said with a laugh. 'First of all, there's something about writing rock 'n' roll in French that is extremely hard. It's pretty easy in English. It sounds good with nothing. Once you get it (in French), it's so profound. The song is so amazing, so even translating that in English, for me it wouldn't work… and I think if I would have done that, Quebec would have turned against me.' Article content He said the reaction in Western Canada was exactly the same as it was here in Quebec — people just adored Harmonium. They told him they didn't care what language the songs were in, 'It was just the music.' Article content Article content He recalled travelling to Toronto with the band to meet with the executives at Quality Records and on the spot the label gave them five grand to make an album in Montreal, something no local label was willing to do. Article content 'We were too weird (for the Montreal record companies),' Fiori said. Article content But so accessible as well, you touched the heart of everyone, said Borne. Article content 'Yeah, but they didn't believe that,' Fiori said. Article content To which I chimed in, 'proving my theory that the vast majority of these record-company people know nothing.' Article content 'Thank you very much,' Fiori said quietly. Article content Then he started laughing. Article content
Montreal Gazette
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Montreal Gazette
Quebec open to holding a state funeral for Serge Fiori, Legault says
The Quebec government is open to holding a state funeral for singer-songwriter Serge Fiori, if that is the wish of the artist's family. Premier François Legault made the announcement in a social media post Wednesday, the day after the death of the founder of the band Harmonium. 'Serge Fiori was a giant of our music who touched the hearts of several generations of Quebecers. To honour his memory, the Quebec government is open, if that is the wish of the family, to holding a state funeral. It's a way to highlight the immense legacy he leaves to the people of Quebec,' Legault wrote. Serge Fiori était un géant de notre musique qui a touché le cœur de plusieurs générations de Québécois. Pour honorer sa mémoire, le gouvernement du Québec est ouvert, si c'est le souhait de la famille, à organiser des funérailles nationales. Une façon de souligner l'héritage… — François Legault (@francoislegault) June 25, 2025 Fiori died Tuesday at the age of 73. His passing, on Quebec's national holiday, sparked a wave of tributes from politicians and artists. Fiori's musical career truly took off in 1974 with the release of the self-titled album Harmonium. The song Pour un instant is now a classic of Quebec music. The group would only release two more albums — Si on avait besoin d'une cinque saison and L'Heptade —before disbanding, leaving a lasting mark on Quebec's cultural universe.
Time of India
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Madonna and the Pope are distant cousins? The internet can't get enough of it
In a plot twist that feels straight out of a Dan Brown novel (minus the murder and secret codes), it turns out that Madonna—the Queen of Pop, is actually related to the new head of the Catholic Church. According to none other than renowned historian and genealogy expert Henry Louis Gates Jr., Madonna and Pope Leo XIV (aka Robert Prevost) are ninth cousins, several times removed. This revelation comes from Finding Your Roots, the long-running PBS documentary series hosted by Gates. The show, which has previously connected celebrities like Oprah Winfrey and Anderson Cooper to historical surprises, took a deep dive into the new Pope's lineage. And what do you know? Tucked somewhere in the tangled family tree is a 16th-century Québécois man named Louis Boucher de Grandpré, born in the 1590s. He's the common ancestor linking the 66-year-old pop icon and the 69-year-old pontiff. As Gates explained—and as The New York Times confirmed—this unexpected bloodline connection doesn't stop with Madonna. Pope Leo XIV is also distant cousins with Justin Bieber, Angelina Jolie, Hillary Clinton, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, and even Beat Generation author Jack Kerouac. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Esse novo alarme com câmera é quase gratuito em Ilha Comprida (consulte o preço) Alarmes Undo That's one serious crossover between the Vatican and the Vanity Fair party guest list. And let's be clear: this isn't just a fun celebrity trivia nugget. It actually tells us something bigger about the world we live in. Genealogy—especially in this digital, DNA-testing age—is starting to reveal just how interconnected our stories are. It's a reminder that lineage doesn't care about public personas or controversies. Families are messy. History is messier. It also speaks to how celebrity narratives have evolved. This isn't just tabloid material. It's part of a larger conversation about heritage, identity, and the complicated legacies we inherit—even when we have no idea they exist. We probably won't see a family reunion anytime soon (though the internet would absolutely lose its mind if they appeared in a selfie together). Still, it's kind of comforting to know that even the most unlikely people might be connected in some small way. And maybe, just maybe, it's proof that the past has a wild sense of humor. So there you have it: Madonna and Pope Leo XIV are ninth cousins, several times removed. One changed pop culture. The other leads a billion Catholics worldwide. And somewhere, their shared ancestor from 400 years ago is probably watching this unfold and thinking, 'I did not see this coming.' Welcome to 2025—where Madonna and the Pope are family. Literally.
LeMonde
08-06-2025
- Business
- LeMonde
Quebec and Canada find common ground: 'Who is best to stand up to Trump?'
In Montreal's Quartier des Spectacles, the Place des Arts has been transformed into a giant playground as summer approached, with games for children and adults alike. Passersby were invited to join in giant word searches, picking out letters that made up words like "solitude," "joie" (joy), "avalanche" and, notably, "résistance." The word "resistance" echoed across Canada ever since US President Donald Trump unilaterally announced his desire to make the country the "51 st state" of America, while simultaneously launching a trade war against his closest and most reliable ally. Canada shares nearly 9,000 kilometers of border with its neighbor, and its annual trade with the US totals one trillion Canadian dollars (€638 billion). But the word "resistance" rang particularly loudly in the ears of Québécois. For one of the first times in their history, they stand united with the rest of Canada, a country they belong to but have never truly identified with, and from which they nearly broke away in two (failed) referendums, in 1980 and 1995. Not even the two world wars had produced such unity: Quebec refused Ottawa's call for conscription to support Allied forces, arguing at the time that it was out of the question to send reinforcements to the British monarchy. Today, King Charles III remains Canada's head of state (as is the case for all Commonwealth countries, such as Australia). But in this context, Québécois have become less timid. 'Buy Canadian' On this sunny May day, expressions of support for the federal state – typically met with scorn – were flourishing. On Rue Sainte-Catherine, a souvenir shop displayed T-shirts and caps bearing the slogan "Canada is not for sale." At Fairmount, a renowned Montreal bagel shop, bagels were coated in a red paste with white sesame seeds, evoking Canada's national colors. Elsewhere, shop windows displayed signs proclaiming, "It's time to wake up, we're buying Canadian!"
