Provincial Liberals launch petition denouncing 'Quebec bashing' after English federal leaders debate

MONTREAL -

"The Quebec described in these questions is not our Quebec."

The provincial Liberal party has joined Quebec's Premier Francois Legault in denouncing the tone and wording of the questions used by federal leaders debate moderator Shachi Kurl on Thursday.

"The remarks made at the leaders' debate in English accusing Quebec of all the evils were simply unacceptable," reads the preamble of a petition signed by PLQ leader Dominique Anglade.

In the debate, Kurl asked Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-François Blanchet about controversial legislation barring people from wearing religious symbols in some jobs and another aimed at modernizing Quebec's French Language Charter (Bill 101).

“You deny that Quebec has problems with racism,” she said. “Yet you defend legislation such as bills 96 and 21, which marginalize religious minorities, anglophones, and allophones.”

“For those outside the province, please help them understand why your party also supports these discriminatory laws.”

Blanchet responded, suggesting the question was biased.

“The question seems to imply the answer you want,” he said. “Those laws are not about discrimination. They are about the values of Quebec.”

Legault took objection to the question calling the suggestion that the laws were discriminatory or racist "ridiculous."

"I cannot understand how we can end up with this kind of question," he said.

Anglade's party's petition "Le Québec bashing, ça va faire" says, "this kind of talk has no place."

"We are an open, free, strong and proud people who have frank discussions on subjects that are often delicate and do not always lead to consensus," the preamble reads. "These disagreements, however, do not allow anyone to talk about Quebec in this way."

The petition asks those who denounce the comments to sign.