Media Reports on May 8th Rally
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May 17, 2015
To the Editor,
In response to some media reports on the Equal Rights for N.B. Anglophones May 8th rally at the legislature in Fredericton. The following day a Daily Gleaner article by John Chilibeck entitled “Protesters Condemn Bilingualism” was misleading. At no point did any of the speakers advocate eliminating bilingualism. Actually their message was just the opposite.
The messages were condemning duplication and the discriminating manner in which Official bilingualism is and has been implemented concerning posted bilingual jobs. Bilingual English applicants are nearly always refused on the grounds that their second language isn’t good enough even though many have spent several years in French emersion making excellent marks garnering a bilingual certificate, but still not good enough they say.
Could it be that some of the teachers in the different classes in FE schools speak and teach in different dialects depending on where they come from, ie, Caraquet NB, Quebec, or elsewhere making it extremely difficult to learn the language? One might question, under these conditions how many Francophones could pass this same test if it were made mandatory for all applicants?
As for the attendance numbers at the May 8th rally, the Daily Gleaner was close to the estimated two hundred fifty, but an article posted on an ATV website was very controversial. A small post at the top of their page indicated two hundred plus, but further into the main article it stated half the numbers.
Are these half-truths meant to mislead the general public who were not in attendance?
May 17, 2015
To the Editor,
In response to some media reports on the Equal Rights for N.B. Anglophones May 8th rally at the legislature in Fredericton. The following day a Daily Gleaner article by John Chilibeck entitled “Protesters Condemn Bilingualism” was misleading. At no point did any of the speakers advocate eliminating bilingualism. Actually their message was just the opposite.
The messages were condemning duplication and the discriminating manner in which Official bilingualism is and has been implemented concerning posted bilingual jobs. Bilingual English applicants are nearly always refused on the grounds that their second language isn’t good enough even though many have spent several years in French emersion making excellent marks garnering a bilingual certificate, but still not good enough they say.
Could it be that some of the teachers in the different classes in FE schools speak and teach in different dialects depending on where they come from, ie, Caraquet NB, Quebec, or elsewhere making it extremely difficult to learn the language? One might question, under these conditions how many Francophones could pass this same test if it were made mandatory for all applicants?
As for the attendance numbers at the May 8th rally, the Daily Gleaner was close to the estimated two hundred fifty, but an article posted on an ATV website was very controversial. A small post at the top of their page indicated two hundred plus, but further into the main article it stated half the numbers.
Are these half-truths meant to mislead the general public who were not in attendance?