Jean-françois Lisée fails to comfort

Re: “PQ minister softens hard line on bilingualism” (Gazette, Dec. 11)

Thanks, Jean-François Lisée, for trying to reassure me and the rest of the anglo population that the Englishlanguage is well protected by Bill 14 and the OQLF language police, but I’d still like to see this draft bill flushed away.

As Côte-St-Luc Mayor Anthony Housefather pointedg out in his opinion piece published in The Gazette last week, the government takes a very narrow perspective on language by using “mother-tongue” rather than language used in the home or preferred language.

What’s the real reason for making political decisions based upon the language of one’s mother (and father), something that often doesn’t reflect the reality of the language spoken in one’s home today?

Most English-speaking Quebecers would hardly trust the OQLF to decide at what critical mass a municipality or institution would lose its bilingual status. Leave that decision to those affected. The current law leaves the bilingual status with the city council, just as it should. A few bilingual towns communicating effectively with their constituents will have no important bearing on preserving the French language.

Enough with sugar coating the bitter pill of narrowminded and mean-spirited policy. Glenn J. Nashen, Councillor, Côte-St-Luc