Background Exhibit 1
The province of Quebec is made up of 3 groups; the Francophones, Anglophones and the Native Americans. The conflict had started between the English and French in the 1700s when Canada had split into Upper and Lower Canada. As the English language began to dominate over French language the conflict increased. At this point, French nationalism became an important part of Quebec and Canadian politics. It was French nationalism that led to the Quiet Revolution in Quebec, and the formation of the FLQ (Front de Liberation du Quebec). Not long after, this nationalism led to the creation of the Parti Quebecois, which was followed by 2 referendums on Quebec separation from the rest Canada. During this period, language laws in Quebec, along with the laws regarding education, were changed. The changes were made to secure the French language and culture. Today there are about 7 million French-speaking people in Canada out of about 30 million Canadians. These facts illustrate how hard it would be to keep a culture and language.