I live in Sudbury, a city in Ontario. It seems to me like it’s the only place in all of Canada where French and English get along.
This city, much like our country is made up mostly of French and English-speaking people. Unlike the country as a whole, though, we don’t hate each other.
Do Canadians who are from provinces other then Quebec actually hate those who live there? Do the people of Quebec hate the rest of Canada? These are interesting questions and are very hard to answer.
I don’t know a lot from the Quebec point of view, as all of the people I know who are from Quebec don’t seem to know how the general population of Quebec feels. From the English or rather Ontarian side of things I don’t know anyone who hates Quebecers, although I do know many people who hate the separatists.
My father is from Quebec. He grew up in Quebec, lived there until his 20s and then moved to Ontario. Once in Ontario he met, dated and eventually married my mother, a half-Irish, half-Scottish woman.
This perhaps gives me a different viewpoint from other people. Part of me is French and part of me is English. It hurts my heart to think that Quebecers want to separate, because to me Canada and Quebec cannot be separated. They are one and the same.
Canada is made up of many different cultures, and all of them are as important as the others.
The people of Quebec believe that they are a distinct culture and they are right, however, but so are all the peoples of all the provinces. We are all different, we are all distinct, but it’s the sum of those parts that makes Canada what it is.
We are French, we are English, we are native, we are of many nations, we are young, we are old, we are parents, we are children, we are one. Borders are lines drawn on a map, divisions created in the mind of men, they are not real.
What does it truly mean to be Canadian? When new immigrants come to our country, we encourage them to keep their culture. So to me being Canadian means being allowed to be who we wish to be.
Should Quebec ever separate, it will break my heart. My country will be gone. There is no Canada without Quebec. We lose so much by fighting. There’s so many great things we could achieve if we co-operated.
I have written this because I have read many forums and news articles. Many of them said the same thing. The people of Quebec want to know if we want them, they want to know that we care.
I am here to say I care. I care about this country, I care about Quebec. You are a part of me, you are a part of us all and without you we would be diminished.
Can Quebec survive as its own nation? Probably. Can Canada survive without Quebec? Probably. But how much would we lose? How much of what we could be together, united as one, do we lose?
I am holding out my hand, and I am asking Quebec will you stay, will you be my brother?
Kris Poliquin
Greater Sudbury
