PROMOTING ENGAGEMENT
Forum aimed at young anglos
Young English-speaking Quebecers will learn about leadership and community involvement at next weekend’s second annual Youth Engagement Forum and Changemakers Summit.
“We’re inviting and hosting young people from all over Quebec,” said Adrienne Winrow, director of Youth For Youth Quebec, the non-profit organization behind the event. “Our goal is to have 100 young people. Ultimately, the spirit of the youth forum is to promote civic engagement among youth.
“By the end of the forum, we would like them to feel empowered to make change and take leadership roles in their communities, schools, cities and in the province. As an organization, we want to have an impact on young English speakers’ feeling of belonging so that they can thrive in Quebec.”
The forum takes place Saturday, March 30, from 1-9 p.m. at Casa d’Italia, on Jean Talon St. E. Admission is free.
Attendees will take part in two workshops: Intro to Civic Engagement, by the Institut du nouveau monde; and the Changemakers Process workshop, by Ben Loomer of free online tutoring service LEARN Quebec.
“One of (Loomer’s) specialties is the theory of change in communities, organizations and culture,” Winrow said. “The idea is that the young people attending will be preparing, with his help, to speak and present ideas at the Changemakers’ Summit, at the end of the forum.”
To help participants prepare to share their ideas, a member of the Playwrights’ Workshop Montreal will lead a workshop on overcoming stage fright and speaking in front of an audience.
Comedian Adam Susser, host of The Gazette’s Hockey Insight
Out show, will talk about finding success as a young English-speaking Quebecer; and there will be a keynote address by Greg Kelley, Quebec Liberal MNA for Jacques-Cartier.
Christopher Skeete, parliamentary assistant to Premier François Legault for relations with English-speaking Quebecers, will also speak.
The goal of the day is to foster a sense of belonging and involvement, according to Malcolm Lewis-Richmond, president and cofounder of Youth for Youth Quebec.
“We’re there to inspire English-speaking youth to take their place,” he said. “We don’t see a lot of the English-speaking community in prominent positions in Quebec. Part of our message is that we have a very high level of French, and we should be comfortable taking those leadership positions.”
Lewis-Richmond is quick to point out that his organization has no interest in fuelling old language debates, but hopes to create an inclusive environment where young people for whom English is a primary language can envision a future for themselves in this province.
“Youth for Youth Quebec does not want to start a language war,” he said. “We want to build bridges between different language groups. We totally support using the French language. “The point I try to communicate is that the English-speaking community is not on an even playing field in Quebec. There are not as many opportunities in schools; there are not as many employment opportunities.”
Lewis-Richmond, who is finishing a degree in linguistics at UQÀM, became interested in issues affecting young people as a member of the NDP Youth Wing.
“I noticed youth were engaged in a different way than adults,” he said of the experience. “Youth have so many preoccupations in the immediate term, sometimes it’s not easy to think about the medium term.
“So when you talk about access to health care with English-speaking youth, they won’t flag it as an issue to one of their elected officials until they face a barrier.”
Lewis-Richmond, 25, realized that there was potential to address issues affecting young anglophones in 2017 while participating in a focus group on the status of English-speaking youth in Quebec.
Youth for Youth Quebec was born. Active for just over a year, the organization now counts approximately 150 members.
“We want English-speaking youth to feel as if they’re québécois or québécoise, despite the fact that one of the languages they use primarily is not French,” Lewis-Richmond said.
A list of 12 solutions to issues facing Quebec’s English-speaking youth will be presented at the Youth Engagement Forum and Changemakers Summit.
“We want to get young people to address these issues themselves,” he said. “I hear a lot of ideas for events that build community for young people; they just need support and a leadership platform to make them a reality.”