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Montreal Gazette
13 hours ago
- Montreal Gazette
Letters: Lowering the volume makes sense, and not just to appease the neighbours
Neighbours of loud establishments are justifiably unhappy about the noise emanating from these venues. But what about the customers and employees inside? Prolonged exposure to excess noise levels is a well-known cause of hearing damage. Reducing sound to a safe level would benefit them, too. And there's no reason why they wouldn't enjoy the environment just as much. Tim Skene, Montreal Lift language barriers, too Quebec has introduced Bill 112, designed to ease some interprovincial trade barriers. However, I don't find it terribly encouraging to know that a tradesperson from another province can come to Quebec and start working immediately — yet much-needed family physicians from other provinces generally have to pass a French-language proficiency test before being permitted to start the practice of saving lives. This seems like another case of misplaced logic on the part of the CAQ. Let's encourage everyone to come to work in Quebec by eliminating language barriers. Allen Rubin, Westmount $61-billion dome helps us how? Re: ' Golden Dome? No, thanks; we don't want it ' (Opinion, June 10) So here's the deal on Donald Trump's Golden Dome as I see it: First scenario: North America gets attacked by nuclear weapons from whomever. The Americans, to save their cities, try to destroy the missiles over Canada before they reach the U.S. border. Result: All the fallout falls on Canadian cities. Second scenario: We have the Golden Dome covering the U.S. and Canada. The missiles start flying and, once again, the Americans try to destroy them over Canada before they obliterate some U.S. cities. Result: All the fallout lands on us again, with no assurance that any U.S. anti-missiles are targeting hostile missiles heading for Canadian cities. Third scenario: We invest $61 billion into our own defence and learn to take care of ourselves. Jerry Trudeau, N.D.G. What qualifies as rebellion in the U.S. In dispatching the National Guard to Los Angeles to quell federal immigration policy protests, President Donald Trump relied upon a legal provision allowing him to do so when there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the U.S. government. I assume then that the infamous Jan. 6 rioting at the Capitol in Washington did not qualify. Ian Copnick, Côte-St-Luc Submitting a letter to the editor Letters should be sent by email to letters@ We prioritize letters that respond to, or are inspired by, articles published by The Gazette. If you are responding to a specific article, let us know which one. Letters should be sent uniquely to us. The shorter they are — ideally, fewer than 200 words — the greater the chance of publication. Timing, clarity, factual accuracy and tone are all important, as is whether the writer has something new to add to the conversation. We reserve the right to edit and condense all letters. Care is taken to preserve the core of the writer's argument. Our policy is not to publish anonymous letters, those with pseudonyms or 'open letters' addressed to third parties. Letters are published with the author's full name and city or neighbourhood/borough of residence. Include a phone number and address to help verify identity; these will not be published. We will not indicate to you whether your letter will be published. If it has not been published within 10 days or so, it is not likely to be.
Vancouver Sun
13 hours ago
- Vancouver Sun
Welcome to šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm Street: Vancouver's newest street name is also its first using alphabet other than English
Vancouver's newest street name is set to be the city's first officially named in an alphabet other than English: šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm Street. The new name, which comes from the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ language of the Musqueam First Nation, will replace Trutch Street on Vancouver's West Side if city council approves a staff report at a meeting next week. The report says the Musqueam First Nation has long advocated for removing the name of B.C.'s first lieutenant-governor, Joseph Trutch, from the street as a way to 'acknowledge Trutch's racist legacy, reduce the prominence of his name, and advance reconciliation efforts.' Trutch denied the existence of Inidegnous rights and reduced the size of reserve lands, the city website says, and the politician is now 'acknowledged as being openly racist and hostile to First Nation Peoples.' Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. In July 2021, Vancouver's then-mayor Kennedy Stewart proposed removing the Trutch name and choosing another picked by the Musqueam chief and council, a move that was unanimously supported by council. In September 2022, the Musqueam Nation, or xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, provided the name ' šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm Street ,' which translated into English as 'Musqueamview Street.' Some Vancouver neighbourhoods, including Chinatown and the Punjabi Market, have street signs featuring other languages along with the official street name, such as Pender or Main Street. The difference in the new proposal would be that šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm will be the street's sole official name. 'In accordance with xʷməθkʷəy̓əm wishes, the legal name of the street will be solely šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm Street, making this Vancouver's first street named in hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓,' the city report says. 'With no fluent speakers left, this change is a landmark moment for the revitalization of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm language, weaving the display of hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ into the public fabric of city life.' Because this is the first Vancouver street named in an alphabet other than English, the city requested input from several entities, including the city's legal department, Vancouver Police Department, Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services, B.C. Emergency Health Services, and others. Emergency service providers raised concerns about 'way-finding and ease of pronunciation for callers in distress on the street,' the report states. To address these concerns, city staff recommended posting two street signs on each post along the street, one with 'šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm St.' and another below with 'Musqueamview St.' In 2022, the City of Victoria also changed all of its Trutch Street signs to Su'it Street, which means 'truth' for the Esquimalt and Songhees First Nations. If council approves the staff report next week, the new šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm Street signs are scheduled to be officially revealed at an event on June 20 at St. James Community Square. dfumano@
Montreal Gazette
15 hours ago
- Montreal Gazette
Hanes: It seems the courts can only do so much to protect English institutions from overreach
By Shock waves rippled across the globe last month when U.S. President Donald Trump slapped a ban on international students at Harvard University, part of his escalating war against America's oldest institution of higher learning. Harvard fought back and the courts granted a reprieve to 6,700 international students attending one of the world's most prestigious universities, including 700 Canadians. But it's clear Trump has it out for Harvard in particular as he seeks to remould American universities to prevent them from spreading supposedly 'woke,' leftist ideology and challenging his administration's undercutting of democracy. He has withdrawn billions in grants and research funding, arrested international students or revoked their visas, threatened universities' tax status, and interfered with diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. It's a terrifying blow to academic freedom — an attack intended to weaken a powerful institution, driven by political motives and petty resentments. Closer to home, it's hard not to notice parallels with how Premier François Legault has been treating Quebec's English universities. His efforts to hobble them started well before Trump returned to office and his methods are more subtle. But some of the consequences are similar. In 2023, his government without warning announced the doubling of tuition for out-of-province students, a move disproportionately affecting McGill, Concordia and Bishop's universities. While the amount was eventually lowered to 33 per cent and Bishop's got a partial exemption, English schools were later told they had to ensure 80 per cent of their graduates attain an intermediate level of French to graduate. The government also said it would claw back a portion of international student tuition from English universities and redistribute it to francophone institutions. The stated objective of these punitive measures was to protect French. Government ministers blamed English-speaking university students from other provinces for anglicizing downtown Montreal while also lamenting they leave Quebec after they come here to study, instead of integrating and paying taxes. The fee increase seemed intended to make students from the rest of Canada feel unwelcome — and knock the English schools, McGill in particular, down a few pegs. Business leaders, most French university rectors, Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante, academics, student groups and an advisory committee reporting to Higher Education Minister Pascale Déry all denounced the tuition hike, warning it would hurt the economy, academia, scientific research and the vitality of the higher education ecosystem. It went ahead anyway. McGill and Concordia launched a legal challenge while their revenues, recruitment and reputations suffered. In April, Quebec Superior Court overturned the tuition fee increase and the onerous French requirements for out-of-province students, calling them 'unreasonable.' This week, Déry's office announced the Quebec government won't appeal the judgment that used words like 'unfounded,' 'fuzzy,' 'erroneous' and 'incoherence' to describe the factual basis (or lack thereof) justifying the manoeuvres. Yet instead of emerging chastened, the Legault government has been emboldened. Déry's office confirmed she intends to double down on the tuition increase while also emphasizing that Quebec is under no obligation to guarantee students from outside the province access to its universities. Time will tell what the latter chilling statement really means. But in the current context, it sounds ominous for McGill and Concordia. What looked like a partial win may end up amounting to pyrrhic victory. Or maybe more like Groundhog Day. The Legault government may simply plan to go back to the drawing board to figure out how to do what it intended in the first place, this time in a way that passes legal muster. It's making a generous interpretation of the judgment — taking it as constructive criticism rather than a stern rebuke. Quebec Superior Court Justice Éric Dufour struck down the tuition hike and French requirements, but he mainly found fault with 'poverty of evidence' and contradictory arguments for failing the test of 'reasonableness.' 'It's true that discretionary power warrants a lot of room to manoeuvre and that the court must grant the minister all the latitude to act. Restraint is required when it comes to decisions based on political choices,' Dufour wrote. 'But as important as discretion is, the minister must nevertheless demonstrate that it's being exercised in a reasonable manner, that's to say in this instance, with respect to existent and founded facts.' It's a ruling largely based on administrative principles. The judge steered clear of bigger questions pertaining to rights that were raised in the case because the technical flaws made them moot to the ultimate outcome. These include McGill's argument that the tuition hike for students from other provinces violated its equality rights on the basis of language. Since the judge left these matters unanswered, perhaps this will give the universities recourse in the future. Because the fight seems destined to continue with a government that has a track record of trying to diminish English institutions, be they school boards, colleges, hospitals or universities. The battle may even ramp up if the government looks to meddle in the composition of the student bodies. All Quebec universities are reeling from a drop in enrolment from international students because of changes to both federal and provincial policy. Their higher tuition helps make up for government underfunding and is essential to conducting scientific research. The crackdown on international students may be part of a Canada-wide plan to rein in the surging number of temporary immigrants, which has contributed to the housing crisis. But in Quebec, it's also part of a broader effort to reduce immigration for the purposes of protecting the French language and culture. Legault has made it no secret that he considers anglophone students from the rest of Canada a threat to French, too. The use of the word 'access' by Déry's office with regards to students from other provinces suggests a toughening of Quebec's stand and a sharpening of previous complaints about Quebecers having to 'subsidize' the education of young people from the rest of Canada. This portends ill for McGill and Concordia's efforts to attract the best and the brightest, since many of their students come from elsewhere in the country. It appears the courts can only do so much to protect English institutions from political leaders who read encouragement into rulings that should leave them embarrassed, and who have no qualms about trampling constitutional rights to achieve their aims, invoking the notwithstanding clause to shield laws that otherwise would be struck down. It gives new meaning to the slogan on the novelty T-shirts often sold near the Roddick Gates during frosh week: 'Harvard: America's McGill.'
