To my DU American friends,

[northamericancitizen]

Most of times I get you.

Lately,your turmoil, your awkwardness ( here this word used in the sense of clumsiness)while discussing minorities rights; sometimes I don't get.

In my point of view you should not spend time arguing among yourselves about gay rights, woman rights etc. You guys belong to the USA: you are the majority when it comes to world power. (Or you used to up to a couple of years ago for the ones who follow international politics.)

Indulge me while I tell you how my People built its self-esteem...

Till the 60s the French-Canadian, were feeling and acting as second class citizens cause we were a minority within Canada. (Even thou we were the direct descendants of one of the founding People)

On top of it the Catholic Church was keeping (up to my my parents generation) the Quebequers on a tight leash. True, they (the catholic church) helped preserving our mother tongue and culture but their oppression was a high price to pay.

So the Revolution Tranquille happened. We did not feel the need to take arms. The name is self-explanatory: tranquille means quiet.

My People succeeded in trowing out the Church and obliterate (almost)our identity as second class citizens (which came with the intrinsic acceptance of the anglo-saxon dominance over our economic life.)

All those words used as a preamble to demonstrate the fact that all Quebequers, male and female know about the difficulties that can arise when you are part of a minority.



The gut feeling for surviving and go beyond that state: finding a true identity worth of respect for anybody to feel and see.


Where was I?

Not that far...

Please my American friends, work together to regain your identity. You are now in the uncomfortable position of being isolated.

Put in a corner as the class's bully. In the position of the one who can,t be trusted and with whom nobody wants to be seen with...

You are now a minority.

Don't quarrel among yourself. Get together, join hands for the good of your country and your collective self-esteem. Than and only than, hope will fill your heart again.

lise

your northern neighbor

[Drum]

1. Thank you for the reminder.

That's what friends do.

:hi:

[MissWaverly]

2. thank you

we need to be more supportive of each other to bring back some sanity to this country.

:-)

[zeemike]

3. That is the best advice I have heard in a while.

It is what we need to do.
But Our problem is in some respect much greater than that or our great Friends to the north.
All of us (except for the privilege few that sit on the board of directors somewhere) are second class citizens made so by the take over of the government by the corporate structure. We are slowly but surly becomes surfs and share croppers in our own land. A kind of 21st century feudal system in which the corporations are the landed gentry and we are the feudal surfs.
It is not going to be easy to change this trend but it must be done, This world can not support this destructive behavior for much longer.
At least that is how I feel.

[northamericancitizen]

7. I hear you ... it can be done. Use creativity and your collective sense of humanity

Do you think we could have produce such artists as the Cirque du Soleil, Robert Lepage or the guys who directed the movies ``Les invasions barbares`` or C.R.A.Z.Y ? if we had kept on being the servants to the MASTERS?

One of Quebec famous slogan: Maitres chez nous ( masters of our home).

We also took example about what to avoid: excessive consumption of goods and celebrities in order to feel alive...

[zeemike]

15. Again all good advice

And one of our greatest assets is the fact that most of the creative people are on our side.
I can only hope to live long enough to see the day.

[illinoisprogressive]

4. thanks. I am half french so It is nice to hear from a french canadian.

[Swamp Rat]

5. oui

but why should we work with les pouffiasse trous de cul to preserve our identity? After all, the Anglophiles have nearly destroyed our way of life in Southern Louisiana as it is and are still trying. Zut!

[northamericancitizen]

9. Always been a fan dear Swamp Rat. I did not know that

you were part of the french community down in Louisianne. We are kinda cousin...

Last week Zacharie Richard was on Radio-Canada promoting his last album. He made a point of describing the exode of too many musicians from New Orleans in the aftermath of Katrina.

He also, as always remind us Quebequers that there 's still a live community struggling to preserve it's french identity south our border.

[Swamp Rat]

11. I met Zachary 10 years ago.

Years ago my cousin worked for a German news service in Köln. He came to Louisiana with a film crew to document the Francophone community in the Lafayette area. We went to many homes of Cajun musicians to interview them (concentrating on accordian players), and one of them was Zachary. His house is in a remote place and he had recently built a small recording studio inside. He and his wife were very friendly, and very down to Earth. Incidentally, not many people outside of Southern Louisiana (and France and Quebec) know about him and his music.

http://www.zacharyrichard.com/

[northamericancitizen]

12. He is famous in Acadie, New Brunswick. The cajuns come from there.

or vice et versa...

[Swamp Rat]

13. Oh yeah, there is also L'Acadie, New Brunswick

I also imagine my Scottish relatives in Nova Scotia (originally from the Highlands, West of Aberdeen ;)) might have heard of him. :)



:D

[dddem]

16. I heard him once

many years ago. He opened for Jimmy Buffett. I had never heard of zydeco before that. Loved it!

[PerfectSage]

6. Hi eastern neighbor.

:hi: Thinking about the Quiet Revolution... ...the right wing culture wars in the US are trying to put America into that same pre Quiet Revolution state that Quebec was once in?

[northamericancitizen]

10. I think so...

but a lot worse cause the corporations are much more powerful.

That's why it's so important for those of you who are aware of the threats, to regain (or keep on) your self-esteem as american citizens.

[undergroundpanther]

8. Thanks

but as we are joining hands we cannot join hands with the bullies because they will find a way to break us apart every time.Bullies cannot tolerate peace and sensitivity.

[roguevalley]

14. you speak the truth. they spent six years dividing us and we have to

get together. by the way, my dad's family had family in Quebec. I love the mix of cultures and languages in Canada. I wish I could tell you my sorrow when the war happened. I felt like the best part of us was being killed too.