In Canada and North America, this equality of status is good for French. However, when all programs are put on the same footing, the minority official language will always be at a great disadvantage. Equality on the ground is measured by the availability of resources for creation, production and dissemination. When the federal government decides to give grants to Quebec…
Remember, French is the minority language. French is the one that's declining in Canada; it's the one that's being shoved aside. It's the one that's being systematically erased. That's the right word: it's being quietly erased. It's being erased here in Hull on the NCC signs that the City of Gatineau is required to post in English and French. French has been erased in Quebec in order to be consistent with this vision of bilingualism. We had removed English, of course, but French is being erased in Quebec.
The federal government has taken incredibly violent action through the National Capital Commission, which we are supposed to call the "Commission de la capitale fédérale"! For a Quebecker, the national capital is Quebec City. Ottawa is the capital of the Canadian federation. I think the word "national" is inappropriate in that title.