The Office québécois de la langue française denounces in its latest study the fact that people who shop in Montreal are not greeted only in French. Apparently, adding “ Hi » to “Hello” is sacrilege.
At the same time, he affirms that people can be served in French in 98% of cases. It’s not perfect, but it’s not bad!
Politicians can talk as much as they want about the only official language, which is French, but they must recognize that Montreal is not a French-speaking city simply because they say it is. Let’s be realistic: Montreal (at least the center of the city, where all the tourists and businesses are) is bilingual/multilingual.
The province may be French, but the city is, in reality, international. The expression “Hello-Hi » should be used to promote the city as welcoming and inclusive.
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