The largest Quebec flag in history, measuring a total of 60 feet by 90 feet, was unfurled Saturday on the Place des Arts esplanade, in the heart of Montreal, to celebrate the 75e anniversary of the fleurdelysé.
“It was very important for us to mark this anniversary. Seventy-five years is not nothing. The fleurdelysé represents our past, our present, our future. It is our memory and it belongs to all Quebecers. We wanted to show off this symbol of pride, of belonging,” explains The Press the general president of the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society (SSJB) of Montreal, Marie-Anne Alepin.
More than 200 people helped unfold the huge flag, designed by Version Image Plus printer located in Laval, then hoist it a few meters above the ground. Singer Daniel Boucher then sang People of the country by Gilles Vigneault.
At a time when the French language is “abused in the metropolis”, continues Mme Alepin, “showing the love we have for our Quebec flag is crucial”.
“It illustrates that we must and that we can collectively take a greater interest in the protection of our French language. If today we are unveiling this immense fleur-de-lis, the largest in history, in the heart of the metropolis, where our language and our culture are the most abused, it is to send the clear message that we are determined to do change the trend”, she insists.
A declining language
The whole thing comes as the weight of French indeed continues to decline in Quebec and across the country, while the growing number of Canadians speak a language other than French or English at home, revealed in August latest census data from Statistics Canada. The proportion of people who reported having French as their mother tongue increased from 77.1% to 74.8% from 2016 to 2021 in Quebec. This decline can be seen across the country, where the proportion of Francophones fell from 20.6% to 19.6% during these five years.
“Given our minority situation, we must always remain vigilant,” also mentioned the CAQ MP for Anjou–Louis-Riel, who represented the Legault government. “This flag really embodies what we are, a different nation, the only French-speaking majority state in North America,” she said.
Two Bloc MPs, Denis Trudel and Mario Beaulieu, also reiterated during the ceremony that the “battle” to protect French will be “crucial” in the coming months. “The federal government is preventing us from making French our common language,” insisted Mr. Beaulieu, while his colleague underlined “that we are doing what we can, in Ottawa, to protect ourselves against the onslaught of the ‘English’, calling on Quebecers to rally to the protection of French.
“We have such a beautiful flag that I would like everyone to know it. I’ll probably be satisfied when it floats […] at the headquarters of the United Nations”, for his part launched the president of the national executive council of the Parti québécois, Jocelyn Caron, in reference to the independence of Quebec.
At the microphone, the co-spokesperson for Québec solidaire, Manon Massé, for her part joked, pointing out that “Maurice Duplessis is not really our friend”. “But he gave us the fleur-de-lis. We owe him one, ”she said in the same breath. Thanks to this flag, she says, Quebec “got rid of an important colonial system, just as we got rid of the king’s oath not even a month ago,” she said. , to loud applause from the crowd.
The Liberal MP for Viau Frantz Benjamin, he argued that the presence of elected officials from all parties “is a living testimony to what the flag represents in Quebec”. “It unites us, it brings us together. And we have a duty to protect it, to preserve it, ”he told the people gathered on the spot.
Several other activities celebrating the 75e anniversary of the fleurdelysé are scheduled for Saturday across the province. A commemorative ceremony is planned in front of the National Assembly of Quebec, in the middle of the afternoon, in the presence of deputies from different parties as well as the President of the Assembly, Nathalie Roy.
On January 21, 1948, the Legislative Assembly of Quebec – which later became the National Assembly – adopted its own flag. At that time, Prime Minister Maurice Duplessis declared that a flag was needed “that would exclude any sign of serfdom or colonialism”, a thinly veiled allusion to the British Union Jack which had been, since the Conquest, the only official flag of country.
With Mylène Crête, The Press