This is interesting. Canada has been having problems, perhaps greater than the US has had, in getting immigrants to assimilate and respect Canadian values so Quebec has gone one step further. New immigrants will be required to sign a declaration that they intend to learn French and respect the values of their adopted country.
Needless to say, the left is furious. So, you must give supporters of the declaration enormous credit for even pushing the measure. Can you imagine the uproar if such an effort were attempted here, but maybe things aren’t bad enough here—yet! From the National Post:
MONTREAL – Future immigrants to Quebec will be required to sign a declaration promising to learn French and respect Quebec’s “shared values,” the government announced yesterday.
In a document with echoes of the controversial code adopted last year by the rural town of Herouxville, immigrants will be informed that Quebec is a democracy where men and women are equal and violence is prohibited.
“Quebecers have said yes to immigration, but they said yes to immigration on the condition that these immigrants integrate into our society,” Immigration Minister Yolande James said as she announced the policy, which takes effect in January.
She added that immigrating to Quebec “is a privilege, not a right.”
There is a lot of information on the web about Herouxville, the town that inspired this initiative. One story is here.