National Assembly leaders unimpressed with comparison of language law to the Gestapo
Lawyer Anne-France Goldwater's comments comparing the Francois Legault government's law to the "Gestapo" during testimony on Quebec's Bill 96 that seeks to strengthen the province's French-language Charter (Bill 101) is causing a stir in the National Assembly.
"I think that our tax dollars should go more towards education than to creating a new form of — please don't get mad at me, I'm a Jew and it's a language that comes to mind right away — we don't need a new Gestapo where we're starting to fink on each other," she said in hearings held by the Quebec Community Groups Network, a collection of English-language community organizations.
Legault was asked about the comment and said it's completely absurd and insulting to the Jewish community.
He said French will always be vulnerable, and that the bill (An Act respecting French, the official and common language of Québec) as tabled is reasonable.
"I cannot understand Mrs. Goldwater," said Legault. "How can you compare protection of French in Quebec and the Nazis. I know that she is a part of the Jewish community, but it's so insulting for all the Jewish community. I cannot understand what she said."
Liberal opposition leader Dominique Anglade said a comparison between Quebec's French-language watchdog (the OQLF) and the Gestapo cannot be made.
"You can't compare the two," said Anglade. "We're going into extremes when we do such comparisons. I think we need to be careful in the conversations that we have."
The QCGN declined to comment on Goldwater's statement.
Hearings on Bill 96 at the National Assembly begin Tuesday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.