In the run-up to the 1995 Quebec independence referendum, I was president of the Council for Canadian Unity, the province-wide coordinating NGO for the “NO” campaign. Before that, I had been principal secretary to Prime Minister Brian Mulroney.
Today, I am concerned that Canada may be sleepwalking towards losing the next Quebec referendum, which may come sooner than we think.
The Quebec sovereignty/independence movement is still very much alive today despite having lost two referendums, in 1980 and 1995.
In the October 1995 provincial referendum, whose 30th anniversary has just been widely observed throughout Quebec, voters were asked to vote either “OUI” or “NON” about Quebec seceding from Canada and becoming an independent country, with a partnership with Canada to be negotiated.
After the “NO” side lost this referendum by a hair, the large and well-funded campaign organizations on both sides officially disbanded, and many federalists, in Quebec and elsewhere, assumed that the issue had been settled for a generation.
But not so the forces of Quebec independence. A new pro-independence organization in Quebec, OUI Québec (Organisations unies pour l’indépendance), was created in 2014 and is increasingly active and successful today. There is also a highly motivated youth movement, Génération OUI, and even a seniors group.
Since 2021, the president of OUI Québec has been Camille Goyette-Gingras. She is a very effective and visible communicator. She has easy access to virtually all francophone Quebec media, where editors and journalists are generally favourable to Quebec independence.
OUI Québec and Génération OUI constantly host events, educational campaigns, and forums around the province, aimed at mobilizing support for independence. They are particularly targeting younger Quebec francophones, in schools and universities, and they heavily emphasize Québécois artists, popular music and musicians, actors, journalists, comedians, and books, as well as frequently acting as newspaper, radio, and TV commentators.
Given the rise of youth support for sovereignty, what strategies could federalists employ to effectively counter the growing influence of independence movements in Quebec?
If Quebec were to hold another referendum and vote for independence, what potential economic implications might arise for both Quebec and the rest of Canada?
The article highlights the effectiveness of the pro-independence movement's communication strategies. How might this approach influence future political campaigns in Canada?
Comments (9)
I’m 70 years old, and dealing with Quebec’s wants has been constant throughout my lifetime. I’m so tired of it! Quebec has evolved into a fully independent state bankrolled to a large extent by the rest of Canada, but I’m not sure what great things Quebec has done in return to help Canada succeed. Given the chance, I’d vote for Quebec to separate so that I can spare my children and grandchildren the misery of having this millstone hang around their necks for the entirety of their lifetimes.