TSS: A Bloodshot Stew for St-Jean (ewww)

Some victory. Sure, the anglo bands can play L'autre St-Jean in English, but they must be presented in French, as per provincial regulation. Even that has not stopped the whining from the usual suspects.

And don't doubt that some ethnocentric types (JPQ, RRQ) will show up to shout them down anyway (despite the militants' "respectable" beards, like the SSJB), for the temerity to sing in Canada's (and Quebec's) other official language. Or will the sponsors provide adequate security for a welcome change?

Never mind that there is no obvious reason for anglos to play on St-Jean. (Patriots' Day, perhaps). They are likely neither Catholics, French-Canadians, nor sovereignists, the official stakeholders for the commemoration. After all, the holiday is not called Civic Holiday, in English or French, but the National Holiday. Which nation would that be, anyway?

Are they all drunk and lacking in discrimination this far ahead of the party?

The Suburban: 'A hootenanny in any language'

most are nationalist, but most are not sovereignist (only 33% or less)

they can be manipulated, but sometimes they stand up for minorities (e.g., L'Affaire Bloodshot Stew)

http://www.thesuburbannews.ca/content/en/1823 

“Bring in an African group, Vietnamese rappers or Finnish trombonists and we think it's cute. It's La Fête nationale! Everyone is a Quebecer,” wrote Yves Boisvert in Monday's La Presse. “But an anglophone in a second-tier St. Jean show? What a repugnant idea...”

NP: 'Quebec separatists want to silence anglo acts'

http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=1699266

"Anglophones have been among us for 250 years," [Minister of Culture Christine St-Pierre (PLQ)] told the Presse Canadienne. "They are Quebecers." It was that sentiment that inspired the organizers of L'Autre St-Jean to invite Lake of Stew and Bloodshot Bill, and it would be wrong if an intolerant few spoiled the party. "The organizers reflect the reality, they reflect the climate here in Quebec, and that's a climate of tolerance," [Lake of Stew band member Richard Rigby] said. "We might speak different languages, but culturally we're the same."

Except, we anglophones don't use violence as a form of political pressure.

L'Affaire Bloodshot Stew

http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/politique-quebecoise/200906/15/01-875808-fete-nationale-st-pierre-fustige-les-souverainistes-radicaux.php

L'exclusion de deux formations musicales anglo-montréalaises d'un spectacle de la Fête nationale a été dénoncée sans réserve lundi par les libéraux et les péquistes.

La ministre de la Culture, Christine St-Pierre, a pointé du doigt la frange «intolérante» du mouvement souverainiste tandis que le porte-parole de l'opposition officielle en matière de langue, Pierre Curzi, a appelé les responsables à faire marche arrière.

M. Curzi et Mme St-Pierre s'opposent à la décision de l'Association culturelle Louis-Hébert d'exiger le retrait des groupes Bloodshot Bill et Lake of Stew du spectacle alternatif «L'Autre St-Jean», qui aura lieu le 23 juin à Montréal ...

The concert is called "L'Autre St-Jean (not L'Autre Fete nationale), but then the holiday has both names even officially.

Reality check: French is not the only official language in Quebec, but the only official one of the provincial government. Meanwhile, I pay my Quebec taxes, licences, etc., in English.

So will the anglos acts finally "accepted", sing in French only? Or both French and English? English only would be true liberty. But also irrelevant to a fake "national" holiday, if the nation has only one official language.

Also, there is a regulation that official St-Jean festivities must be conducted in French.

The Louis-Hébert association – which has ties to the sovereignist Société St. Jean Baptiste AND the JPQ, had insisted all acts be in French.

However, the organization distanced itself from statements by an association vice-president who first set off the controversy.

Instead, the association said yesterday that its concern about the participation of the anglophone artists is because of a rumoured protest at the event and worry the city would cancel it. (They didn't.)

Still, to assuage irate nationalists, spokesperson Julien Larocque-Dupont (also of the JPQ) reiterated the English artists' small part, saying "there's no question here of a bilingual show." (News flash: if the show is presented in both French and English, it is bilingual.)The other artists on the bill, even the franco and sovereignist ones, support the anglos being there.

The festivities are supported by tax dollars (provincial, and ultimately federal transfers).

http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/national/200906/14/01-875501-lautre-st-jean-des-appuis-et-des-critiques.php

«Ils sont québécois et on les accepte comme québécois, a-t-il indiqué. On n'a absolument rien contre le fait qu'ils chantent en anglais. Mais la Fête nationale, ça se passe en français.»

Une réunion tenue vendredi n'a pas permis de trouver un compromis. Pour [Mathieu Bouthillier], c'est donc officiel : les Anglos ne seront pas de la fête. «Pour nous, le dossier est clos», a-t-il affirmé.

Premature categorical statement:

http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/June2009/16/c7284.html

"Il y a des débats qui sont difficiles au Québec, voire même "divisifs". Cela ne veut pas dire que nous devons faire l'économie de ces débats, mais cela signifie que nous devons les faire comme il se doit. Pour l'heure, nous voulons que cette 175e édition souligne ce qui nous unit et nous demandons à tous de respecter cette volonté. Pour nous, l'incident est clos", ajoutent les représentants du Mouvement national des Québécoises et Québécois, du Comité de la Fête nationale à Montréal, de l'Association culturelle Louis-Hébert et de C4 Productions.

http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/national/200906/15/01-875621-les-politiciens-marchent-sur-des-oeufs.php

L'autre candidate à la mairie, Louise Harel, a pris ses distances face aux groupes qui réclamaient le départ de Lake of Stew et Bloodshot Bill. Elle estime que la Fête nationale devrait être celle de «tous les Québécois».

«La nation québécoise, c'est des personnes de toutes origines et de différentes langues maternelles, a-t-elle affirmé. Le français, c'est la langue commune. C'est cette langue commune que je souhaite le plus utilisée. Mais dans la nation, on n'exclut pas la communauté anglophone montréalaise.»
[Then let the anglos perform and present, in English only, if they choose.]

Le maire de l'arrondissement de Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie, André Lavallée, affirme qu'il n'est pas question d'intervenir dans le programme de L'Autre St-Jean: «Il faut qu'ils trouvent une solution qui est acceptée par les gens concernés. Le Comité national finance cette fête. Il est en droit d'avoir son mot à dire sur la programmation.' [Actually, her borough is one of the sponsors]

The province will not intercede, even though they put up half the money.

•