Description
Book SynopsisSo They Want Us to Learn French examines how and why Canadians both embraced and virulently opposed the ideal of personal bilingualism over the past fifty years, detailing and analyzing the strategies that social movements on both sides used to advance their goals.
Trade ReviewHayday’s work is solid, carefully researched, and written in an accessible style … [T]he entire book is worthwhile reading, for it tells an important story of efforts, not by political decision-makers or paper-pushers but by grassroots activists, to transform English Canada’s linguistic identity one classroom at a time.
-- Bruce Douville, Algoma University * Canadian Journal of History *
Hayday’s work is a careful account of the English Canadian response to the Official Languages Act and French immersion programming that effectively illustrates the divisions of public opinion on these controversial programs. It is a valuable addition to our understanding of the evolution of English Canadian opinions regarding Canadian identity, official bilingualism, and national unity. -- Jack Cecillon, Glendon College * Historical Studies in Education *
...So They Want Us to Learn French. Promoting and Opposing Bilingualism in English-speaking Canada est à la fois informatif mais aussi symptomatique d’un problème profond et souvent occulté que peu de politiciens canadiens osent regarder en face.
-- Yves Laberge * The Journal of Canadian Studies *
Table of ContentsForeword / Graham Fraser
Preface and Acknowledgments
Introduction: Canada’s Bilingualism Conundrum
1 Bilingualism and Official Languages in Canada
2 From Chez Hélène to the First French Immersion Experiments
3 Playing Games with the Language Czar: The First Commissioner of Official Languages
4 Social Movement Activism, 1969-76
5 Canadian Parents for French and its Adversaries, 1977-86
6 Internationalization and Higher Education: The Second Commissioner of Official Languages
7 Canadian Parents for French and Local Activism, 1977-87
8 Shifting Priorities in the Commissioner’s Office
9 Squaring off the Foes of Bilingualism in the Meech Lake Years, 1986-90
10 Constitutional Crises and Economic Challenges in the Early 1990s
11 A Millennial Reprieve
Conclusion: We Learned French! Well, Many Canadians Did
Appendices
Notes
List of Unpublished Primary Sources
Index
