The vast majority of cases involving parents going to court concerned schools. There was no French education. If we hadn't gone to court, if we hadn't taken the case all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, there might not be very many francophones left. If our kids hadn't been educated in French, they wouldn't be able to speak it.
We have a bible, a Charter of Rights that we take for granted. No one enforces it. It's sad when you have to wait decades before going before the courts to avail yourself of rights that you already have. Without the Court Challenges Program, I can assure you that there wouldn't be many francophones outside Quebec. There wouldn't be many anglophones in Quebec either.
I find it extremely sad to be here yet again telling you why the Court Challenges Program has been so important to minorities and non-learners. People in wheelchairs couldn't access our buildings without this program. They went to court for that right.
The provinces don't even protect our rights. We have to fight all the time. I know parents who have fought for decades, and their children did not attend French schools. I find it extremely sad to be here yet again repeating the same things and trying to find solutions.