Each report from the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) brings with it its share of tremors and forces us to see how maintaining a healthy French language is a constant battle. On all fronts, in the street, at work, at home, in businesses, in culture and even in our educational establishments, there is a battle to be fought to avoid crumbling. Some attacks are brutal and blow to the face; others are insidious and cause slow, but certain, unraveling.
The last Report on the evolution of the linguistic situation in Quebec, unveiled by the OQLF this week, contains its dark sides. In almost all sectors where the state of French in Quebec is monitored, we feel a pulse beating less strongly. The share of Quebecers speaking mainly French at home continues to decline. Fewer allophones and anglophones say they can hold a conversation in French. At work, the picture is similar: French as the main language is being overtaken by English. Reception only in French has decreased in Montreal businesses. In short, the trend is not towards the solidification of achievements, and this, in a context where the government of François Legault has made the fight against the decline of French one of its main battlehorses.
The Minister of the French Language, Jean-François Roberge, is absolutely right to have targeted the “generational divide” as one of the main findings of this five-year report which draws on studies, reports and censuses carried out upstream to paint a complete picture of the situation. Dissected in several ways, young people’s relationship with French shows signs of deterioration, and the worst is perhaps that this quiet detachment from French is played out in a certain indifference. Summarized (too) simply, we could affirm that where previous generations saw the domination of English swallowing Quebec as a threat coming to nourish a feeling of urgency, our main stakeholders have their eyes turned and their arms wide open towards this dictatorship of English associated for them with an opening of the world markets which they embrace.
There will be no point in brandishing the stick or demonizing these young people who adhere to English mainly because it increasingly colors their environment. The study cited by the OQLF on the use of social networks by young people reveals that 55% of 18-34 year olds publish as much in French as in English or mainly in English. The report also shows that 18-44 year olds engage in cultural activities in French less often than those aged 45 and over. That a quarter of middle school students coming from secondary school in French attend an English-speaking CEGEP on the island of Montreal. That the share of 18-34 year olds saying they use French at least 90% of the time at work has fallen from 64% in 2010 to 58% in 2023. This is what we call a slow but certain deterioration.
What can we do to slow down decline where our future is at stake, that is to say among future generations? The two major areas to work on are undoubtedly education and culture. The CAQ government has perhaps pushed the pride button a little too hard in recent years to promote some of its initiatives, but in terms of language, to feed a certain linguistic vanity, we must succeed in giving the taste and make people love it. There is no better way to achieve this than to provide constant exposure: on screens, in music and in literature, initiation to Quebec cultural products must be encouraged from a very young age. Priority number 8 of Minister Jean-François Roberge’s Plan for the French Language concerns better mastery of French by students. Let’s dare to add an ultra-powerful network between schools and cultural institutions to infect children with Quebec’s fabulous cultural productions. Despite noble intentions of the past, this marriage of culture and school often falls by the wayside when the time comes to distribute financial envelopes.
Finally, the proliferation of content in English on digital platforms must be countered by a more sustained presence of French-speaking products. Among other recommendations, the Advisory Committee on the Discoverability of Cultural Content recently proposed that Quebec develop a bill specifically intended to “guarantee the fundamental right of Quebecers to access and discoverability of cultural content of original expression of French language in the digital environment”. The Minister of Culture, Mathieu Lacombe, does not rule out legislating to bring the Web giants into line. Among young customers, less alert to the drama of a weakened language, we will need contagious sowers of joy committed to discovering the richness of French and its uniqueness. Quebec is full of these talented smugglers.