Allah and Quebec – the rest

How many times have I heard that “not every truth is good to tell”? Which can amount to saying to lie by omission, so as not to disturb anyone.

But why should we remain silent about the actions of North African teachers and parents who questioned secular education at the Bedford School in Montreal? To avoid stigmatizing our fellow citizens of the Muslim faith?

No, it would be quite the opposite, muzzling us would leave the field open to the worst opportunists to spit on an entire community for clientelist purposes.

We need to debate this to make it clear once and for all that these rigid blasters from the Bedford School have nothing to do with all of our Muslim fellow citizens.

These are toxic exceptions that endanger the notion of living together in Quebec. They in no way represent what I know about the respect of Muslims in Quebec, for example, for our secular institutions. Mutism would affect all Muslims here who will by association become the first victims of the actions of these radical elements.

The latter are dangerous because they attempt to create a breach in the framework of our fundamental collective values. They jeopardize social cohesion and intercultural cohabitation here.

In my former profession, I cannot tell you the times when I heard French or Belgian elected officials disillusioned by the fact that entire neighborhoods of cities in their country are now under the influence of radical Islamists. And know that these are not urban fables.

The source of this phenomenon is precisely that at a given moment, existing social anchors were insidiously called into question, and so on. The blindness and inertia of certain political leaders allowed the accumulation of small setbacks, until inevitability took hold.

And know that from then on, going back is almost impossible.

Quebec is welcoming and generous, and it must remain so. But any immigrant who arrives here must respect what unites us as Quebecers. We will not change the rules of the game in a secularized society because new players are added.

Our nation is tolerant, but we will never deviate from the principle of secularism in our public institutions. Never !

Thus, there will be no room for naivety in this debate. We must eliminate the germ of Islamic fundamentalism wherever it wants to contaminate, and quickly. The signal must be absolutely clear, and the necessary decisions must be irrevocable.

Well, Prime Minister François Legault allowed himself a shortcut on the subject, once again, with these stories of prayers by Muslims on public roads, but these religious fanatics offered him a plate of political candy. It’s hard not to gorge on it.

And whatever one thinks of it, it hit the mark terribly. He knows that these images are detestable to us.

He wants to intervene to prohibit intolerable communitarian biases, and he is right, but it will be necessary to denounce any political identity drift, if necessary. Tenants of certain desks in the National Assembly could be tempted to add fuel to the fire…

We hope that they will talk on this eminently sensitive and complex subject without falling into the nauseating search for political graces by crushing the Muslims’ backs. The opposite would be unforgivable.

And I feel like asking: where is MP Haroun Bouazzi when we need him?

He also indulged in clientelism with his stories of “construction of the other”. Maybe he wasn’t completely wrong, but he milked himself a lot too hard and buttered way too thick. Repellent.

There is an opportunity for redemption for him in this issue, the chance to demonstrate leadership in the eyes of Quebecers, who currently do not have the odor of holiness about him.

He could use every possible forum to repeat very explicitly that he condemns attempts at religious deviations at Bedford School, there or elsewhere, today or tomorrow.

Nothing less than that, without trying to cook us a dull mush by fueling it with other unrelated issues.

And tell you how much Quebecers would hope that other voices from the Muslim community would also be heard!

And while we’re at it, let me doubt the ignorance of the matter by the entire chain of command of the Ministry of Education. It doesn’t work.

I have respect for genuine believers. With the human stupidities on this Earth, how can you blame someone for hoping for nirvana? But this search for happiness can never be achieved through the use of our institutions.

Otherwise, I don’t think I need to demonstrate my affection for our Muslim fellow citizens, particularly those of Quebec.

And yes, some truths are good to say, but “he who tells the truth is always unbearable, it is known,” argued Quebec writer and director Roger Fournier.

What do you think? Participate in the dialogue