You want a good trick to measure the strength of the convictions of a person who claims to defend freedom of expression? See her reaction when she is criticized harshly, even unfairly.
For many years, the Parti Québécois (PQ) has firmly defended freedom of expression. “We cannot lose sight of foundations as important as freedom of expression in our society,” wrote PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon in 2021.1.
We were therefore very surprised to see the PQ denounce on Monday the choice of singer Émile Bilodeau as host of the National Day show on the Plains of Abraham on June 23. The PQ will not participate in the formal ceremony before the show.
The PQ criticizes Émile Bilodeau for a recurring “lack of respect” towards him and towards supporters of the State Secularism Act. According to the PQ, the singer would not be unifying enough. Here are the three most spicy public declarations of Émile Bilodeau (who campaigned alongside Québec solidaire).
- “The PQ must die [sic] for him to go [sic] sovereignist opposition. »
- In the file of the abolition of the oath to the king, he treated the PQ deputies as “whiners” who “twiddle their thumbs” while congratulating Québec solidaire for having tabled a bill.
- He believes that the secularism law is “misogynist, Islamophobic and degrading” (he wore an anti-law 21 button on National Day in 2020).
According to Méganne Perry Mélançon, national spokesperson for the PQ, the organizers of the national holiday should “not have endorsed the lack of respect and the ultra-partisanship of Émile Bilodeau by appointing him host”.
This position of the PQ is completely inconsistent with the defense of freedom of expression.
An artist’s political beliefs or strong opinions shouldn’t stop them from hosting Quebec’s national holiday – as long as they stay within the limits of the Criminal Code and don’t make racist comments. or misogynists, of course.
The most hypocritical is that the PQ denies wanting to do in the “culture of cancellation” and “does not therefore at all ask for the withdrawal of Émile Bilodeau”.
Let’s call a spade a spade: even if it officially denies it, the PQ very clearly asks the Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois (MNQ), which organizes the show, to dismiss in the future as animator artists with strong opinions which displease certain politicians2.
The MNQ does well to stick to artistic criteria and not to choose its animators according to their degree of respect for the political class.
Of course, the host has the responsibility during the show to make it a unifying and transpartisan event. But before and after the show, he has the right to his freedom of expression.
If it wishes, the PQ has every right to shun the ceremonial ceremony of the show. It is a brief speech of a few minutes that each political party delivers to the 150 dignitaries in the VIP lounge and which does not air on Télé-Québec. His absence wouldn’t even have been noticed were it not for his public outing on Monday.
The problem is that by publicly denouncing the choice of Émile Bilodeau, the PQ knows very well what it is doing: it is putting pressure on the MNQ so that from now on we go through the political declarations of the artists approached for animate the national holiday.
The MNQ does well to resist this suggestion which is harmful to artists’ freedom of expression.
Paul St-Pierre Plamondon did useful work two weeks ago when he was one of the first politicians to change his mind and recognize that in the name of freedom of expression, the Government of Quebec should not prevent an anti-abortion group to rent a room at the Quebec City Convention Center3.
This is why it is surprising and disappointing to see the PQ swim against the tide in terms of freedom of expression by creating this controversy around the national holiday.
2. Another spokesperson for the PQ had the honesty to acknowledge on Monday that the political party is asking the MNQ to “do better” during the next editions of the national holiday.