Alliance Quebec
Encyclopedia
Alliance Quebec was a group formed in 1982 to lobby
on behalf of English-speaking Quebecers in the province of Quebec
, Canada
. It began as an umbrella group of many English-speaking organizations and institutions in the province, with approximately 15,000 members. At its height in the mid-1980s, the group had a network of affiliated anglophone groups throughout the province. However, a prolonged decline in influence, group cohesion, membership and funding ultimately led to its closure in 2005.
(PQ), a party that supports the sovereignty of Quebec and the dominant use of French
in most areas of public and business life, won a majority in the Quebec National Assembly (the province's legislature) in 1976. The vast majority of Quebec anglophones (i.e., Quebecers who speak English as a first language), which at that time made up approximately 13% of Quebec's population (see Language demographics of Quebec
), did not support this party. Some anglophones formed local lobby groups to promote federalism
and argue against new laws such as the Charter of the French Language
(also known as "Bill 101"). After the Parti québécois was re-elected in 1981, several of these groups (notably the "Positive Action Committee" and the "Council of Quebec Minorities") joined together in May 1982, as "The Alliance of Language Communities in Quebec" (or "Alliance Québec") in an effort to gain more influence and to start a province-level dialogue between linguistic groups.
AQ's ideology reflected a desire to promote the rights and interests of the English language community while recognizing there were legitimate goals being pursued by the provincial government in promoting the French language, such promotion having strong support in the majority Francophone population. Alliance Quebec's best-known accomplishments from its earliest years included:
The group had widespread grassroots volunteer activity in its early years. It formed at least 20 regional chapters, including 8 in the anglophone neighbourhoods of Montreal. The federal government subsidized AQ in an effort to promote minority official language groups in the province, providing it with most of AQ's budget ($1.4 million in 1986). Similar funding was provided to French language groups outside Quebec.
In addition to AQ's regional chapters, six federally funded anglophone groups outside of Montreal became affiliated with AQ and sent delegates to its annual convention. Affiliated Quebec anglophone universities, CEGEPS and health and social service institution and community associations were also allowed to send delegates. Institutional members brought AQ substantial public policy expertise and participated the policy formulation process.
By the end of the 1980s, AQ claimed to have 40,000 people on its membership list (including members of regional associations affiliated with AQ, such as the Townshippers'
Association). This led to critiques that people who did not renew their memberships were not removed from this list and that the actual number of dues-paying members hovered around 5,000.
Many of Alliance Quebec's founders were active in the Liberal Party of Quebec, the main opposition party while the PQ was in government. The Liberal Party of Quebec won the provincial election of 1985
, and many of AQ's initial leaders were recruited to work for the new government. Several of AQ's highly educated and bilingual early staff members went on to become Liberal cabinet ministers in later years, such as Thomas Mulcair
and Kathleen Weil
, while others served as MNAs -- Russell Williams (Nelligan
), Russell Copeman
(NDG
) and Geoffrey Kelly (Jacques-Cartier
). While this initially gave AQ strong lobbying contacts within the government, the departure of many of the group's founding leaders eventually hurt the group. Some have argued that the 1985 election was the beginning of a decline in influence of Alliance Quebec, as English-speakers believed the new government was friendlier and so the need for AQ was lower, while the Liberals had more connections with English-speakers than the PQ and so relied less on AQ to transmit their points of view. The group also faced criticism, almost since its founding, that it was not aggressive enough in its demands.
In December 1988, AQ's offices were destroyed in a case of arson
. Then-president Royal Orr sued Le Journal de Montréal
and Tele-Metropole, for falsely reporting that he was the "prime suspect" in setting the blaze. The lawsuit was eventually settled out of court.
Internal tension arose among the directors of AQ over whether or not to support the Liberals in the Quebec general election of 1989
in spite of Bill 178. Some prominent AQ leaders urged a protest vote by anglophones, either by spoiling their ballots or voting for the upstart Equality Party
that opposed the Liberals' legislation. The Equality Party won four seats in the National Assembly
in 1989, but quickly lost its support due to infighting, garnering only 0.3% of the vote in 1994. Rebuffed at the ballot box, some of the Equality Party's remaining active members instead concentrated on winning elected positions in Alliance Quebec in order to have AQ promote the Equality Party's platform (notably, favouring a complete repeal of all mandatory use of French in Quebec, and partitioning Quebec in the event of independence). Public infighting between so-called "moderates" (sympathetic to the Liberal Party) and "radicals" (the remaining members of the Equality Party) within AQ throughout the 1990s, along with a gradual decrease in interest among the general Quebec population in language politics
, led to the marginalization of AQ in the province's politics.
While infighting preoccupied the board of directors and annual convention, the grassroots elements of AQ became less active. Government funding allowed for a permanent staff for the group, which relied less and less on volunteers. AQ's smallest regional chapters, in Quebec's Magdalen Islands
, Lower North Shore and Baie-Comeau, closed down for lack of members, while six of the group's eight chapters on the Island of Montreal
merged in order to avoid closing.
In 1996, the Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec
investigated alleged irregularities during the 1995 Quebec sovereignty referendum, finding among other things that votes in three mainly federalist ridings
had been rejected without valid reasons. Alliance Quebec sued the Quebec government to try to force it to re-examine the rejected ballots in all 125 Quebec ridings. The trial judge ruled against AQ in 2000. AQ appealed, but ceased operations in 2005 (see below). In 2008 the Chief Electoral Officer got the court's permission to destroy the ballots after ruling that AQ's appeal had taken too long.
. Previously a vocal critic of AQ, he won by rallying a group known derisively as "angryphones" (mainly members of the tiny Equality Party and some listeners of right wing talk radio shows, particularly the Howard Galganov
show). He in turn supported Equality Party members for positions on AQ's board of directors. Unlike previous presidents, he made no attempt to meet with political leaders, preferring to conduct his lobbying through media, such as on radio talk shows. Also unlike previous presidents, who generally accepted the objectives of Bill 101 and focused on changing how it was applied, Johnson questioned the commitment to tolerance and human rights of those who supported Bill 101.
After his election, Johnson organized two demonstrations against stores, in particular Eaton's
and The Hudson's Bay Company, that did not place English on their in-store advertising (which was once again legal after amendments to the Charter of the French Language in 1994). Johnson told a crowd of demonstrators that he refused an Eaton's offer to put up English signs in their stores if AQ would quietly call off the protest, as Johnson wanted to make it a public issue. Johnson also had AQ's constitution amended to add his view that Canada's federal government should refuse to recognize a Quebec unilateral declaration of independence
. Johnson also made headlines when the Entartistes
threw a cream pie in his face while he marched in Montreal's 1998 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day parade.
Johnson's presidential campaign and his first six months as president temporarily brought more media attention and members to Alliance Quebec, as the PQ government and Quebec nationalist groups publicly criticized AQ's new, more confrontational tone. However, Johnson called off the group's protests in October 1998 and AQ's media coverage fell considerably, never to recover. Johnson's presidency and those of his similarly minded successors also provoked a negative reaction from the mainstream community of anglophones that formerly supported AQ. Links to the community's key healthcare, educational and community institutions vanished. Several events during these years highlighted the group's lack of support, which ultimately caused it to close down:
Each chapter could send 9 delegates to the annual convention, which took place each May in Montreal. In the 1990s, six chapters in central Montreal merged, which allowed the merged chapter to send up to 54 delegates. (In the William Johnson era, the West Island
chapter's number of delegates was increased to reflect that it was the chapter with the second-largest number of members.) A youth commission of members under thirty years of age also existed and could send up to 18 delegates to the convention. Affiliated groups such as the Townshippers' Association could also send delegates, as could affiliated universities, hospitals and community groups. The outgoing president and board of directors were also entitled to vote at the convention, representing 41 delegates. In theory, an annual convention could have nearly 400 delegates during the 1990s. In practice, the number of delegates attending annual conventions decreased over time as membership fell and affiliated groups stopped participating; the annual convention in 1985 had about 470 delegates while each of the conventions from 1999 onward had under 100 delegates.
The annual convention chose the president and treasurer
of AQ for the upcoming year. (In the William Johnson era, the president's term was lengthened to two years, although each subsequent president resigned before the end of their full two-year term.) The delegates would also choose the board of directors. Half of the forty-person board of directors of AQ would be up for election annually for a two-year term; the top twenty candidates who received the most votes being elected. The new board of directors would meet immediately after the convention to choose the remaining executive positions, including vice president
, vice president "off-island
" (meaning from outside of Montreal), secretary
, and chairman of the board
. The group also had an "Advisory Council" of prominent anglophones to advise the group on important issues from time to time, but this fell into disuse by the late 1990s.
The executives and directors were volunteer positions (although the president received a stipend
.) There were also a number of paid staff members (around two dozen in 1994), such as a general director, a fundraiser, receptionists, researchers and organizers, paid for mainly from federal government grants.
For most of its existence, AQ also maintained committees to study issues. These included (at various times)committees for health and social services, education, youth employment, legal affairs, communication, internal rules, and membership. Some committees organized events and activities. One of these activities, "Youth Employment Services", became independent of AQ in the 1990s and continues to operate. Larger chapters also had some committees, especially in the group's early years.
Lobbying
Lobbying is the act of attempting to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying is done by various people or groups, from private-sector individuals or corporations, fellow legislators or government officials, or...
on behalf of English-speaking Quebecers in the province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It began as an umbrella group of many English-speaking organizations and institutions in the province, with approximately 15,000 members. At its height in the mid-1980s, the group had a network of affiliated anglophone groups throughout the province. However, a prolonged decline in influence, group cohesion, membership and funding ultimately led to its closure in 2005.
Early years — constructive engagement: 1982–1989
The Parti québécoisParti Québécois
The Parti Québécois is a centre-left political party that advocates national sovereignty for the province of Quebec and secession from Canada. The Party traditionally has support from the labour movement. Unlike many other social-democratic parties, its ties with the labour movement are informal...
(PQ), a party that supports the sovereignty of Quebec and the dominant use of French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
in most areas of public and business life, won a majority in the Quebec National Assembly (the province's legislature) in 1976. The vast majority of Quebec anglophones (i.e., Quebecers who speak English as a first language), which at that time made up approximately 13% of Quebec's population (see Language demographics of Quebec
Language demographics of Quebec
This article presents the current language demographics of the Canadian province of Quebec.-Demographic terms:The complex nature of Quebec's linguistic situation, with individuals who are often bilingual or multilingual, has required the use of multiple terms in order to describe who speaks which...
), did not support this party. Some anglophones formed local lobby groups to promote federalism
Federalism
Federalism is a political concept in which a group of members are bound together by covenant with a governing representative head. The term "federalism" is also used to describe a system of the government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and...
and argue against new laws such as the Charter of the French Language
Charter of the French Language
The Charter of the French Language , also known as Bill 101 and Loi 101, is a law in the province of Quebec in Canada defining French, the language of the majority of the population, as the only official language of Quebec, and framing fundamental language rights for everyone in the province...
(also known as "Bill 101"). After the Parti québécois was re-elected in 1981, several of these groups (notably the "Positive Action Committee" and the "Council of Quebec Minorities") joined together in May 1982, as "The Alliance of Language Communities in Quebec" (or "Alliance Québec") in an effort to gain more influence and to start a province-level dialogue between linguistic groups.
AQ's ideology reflected a desire to promote the rights and interests of the English language community while recognizing there were legitimate goals being pursued by the provincial government in promoting the French language, such promotion having strong support in the majority Francophone population. Alliance Quebec's best-known accomplishments from its earliest years included:
- Alliance Quebec’s first success was to lobby the PQ to amend Bill 101. In 1983, the Charter of the French Language was amended (Law 57) to recognize in its preamble to the Charter of the French Language the institutions of the Anglophone community in Québec, abolish language testing for people educated in Quebec and widen the use of English in Anglophone communities and public institutions.
- Alliance Quebec also worked to get English language health and social service guarantees. As a result in 1986, Law 142 was enacted which compels regional authorities to draw up programmes for access in the English language to health and social services throughout Quebec.
- With the financial support and legal leadership of Alliance Quebec, Bill 101’s prohibition of English language signs is challenged in court. In 1988, in its decision Ford v. Quebec (Attorney General)Ford v. Quebec (Attorney General)Ford v. Quebec , [1988] 2 S.C.R. 712 is a landmark Supreme Court of Canada decision in which the Court struck down part of the Charter of the French Language, commonly known as Bill 101. This law had restricted the use of commercial signs written in languages other than French...
, the Supreme Court of CanadaSupreme Court of CanadaThe Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada and is the final court of appeals in the Canadian justice system. The court grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants each year to appeal decisions rendered by provincial, territorial and federal appellate courts, and its decisions...
concludes that the prohibition of all other languages but French on public signs and posters and in commercial advertising is in opposition to the freedom of expression but opens the door to the clear predominance of French. This solution was ultimately adopted by the Government of Quebec and prevails to this day.
The group had widespread grassroots volunteer activity in its early years. It formed at least 20 regional chapters, including 8 in the anglophone neighbourhoods of Montreal. The federal government subsidized AQ in an effort to promote minority official language groups in the province, providing it with most of AQ's budget ($1.4 million in 1986). Similar funding was provided to French language groups outside Quebec.
In addition to AQ's regional chapters, six federally funded anglophone groups outside of Montreal became affiliated with AQ and sent delegates to its annual convention. Affiliated Quebec anglophone universities, CEGEPS and health and social service institution and community associations were also allowed to send delegates. Institutional members brought AQ substantial public policy expertise and participated the policy formulation process.
By the end of the 1980s, AQ claimed to have 40,000 people on its membership list (including members of regional associations affiliated with AQ, such as the Townshippers'
Eastern Townships
The Eastern Townships is a tourist region and a former administrative region in south-eastern Quebec, lying between the former seigneuries south of the Saint Lawrence River and the United States border. Its northern boundary roughly followed Logan's Line, the geologic boundary between the flat,...
Association). This led to critiques that people who did not renew their memberships were not removed from this list and that the actual number of dues-paying members hovered around 5,000.
Many of Alliance Quebec's founders were active in the Liberal Party of Quebec, the main opposition party while the PQ was in government. The Liberal Party of Quebec won the provincial election of 1985
Quebec general election, 1985
The Quebec general election of 1985 was held on December 2, 1985, to elect members of the National Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada. The Quebec Liberal Party, led by former premier Robert Bourassa, defeated the incumbent Parti Québécois, led by premier Pierre-Marc Johnson.This election...
, and many of AQ's initial leaders were recruited to work for the new government. Several of AQ's highly educated and bilingual early staff members went on to become Liberal cabinet ministers in later years, such as Thomas Mulcair
Thomas Mulcair
Thomas J. "Tom" Mulcair is a Canadian lawyer, university professor, and politician. He is the federal Member of Parliament for Outremont, Quebec, Canada, and currently holds a seat in the New Democratic Party of Canada...
and Kathleen Weil
Kathleen Weil
Kathleen Weil is a politician in the Canadian province of Quebec, who was elected to represent the riding of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce in the National Assembly of Quebec in the 2008 provincial election...
, while others served as MNAs -- Russell Williams (Nelligan
Nelligan (electoral district)
Nelligan is a provincial electoral district in Quebec, Canada that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. The riding was created in 1980 from parts of Pointe-Claire and Robert-Baldwin. It includes portions of the Montreal Island including Île Bizard, Kirkland and Senneville...
), Russell Copeman
Russell Copeman
Russell Copeman is a Canadian politician. He was the Liberal Member of the National Assembly of Quebec representing the riding of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce from 1994 to 2008....
(NDG
Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (provincial electoral district)
Notre-Dame-de-Grâce is a provincial electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec.The riding was created in 1939 from parts of the former Westmount provincial electoral district. The riding was called Montreal-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce from 1939 to 1965 and...
) and Geoffrey Kelly (Jacques-Cartier
Jacques-Cartier
Jacques-Cartier is a provincial electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. It was created in 1853, and named after French explorer Jacques Cartier who discovered the Saint Lawrence Valley between 1534 and 1542 in part of what would become New...
). While this initially gave AQ strong lobbying contacts within the government, the departure of many of the group's founding leaders eventually hurt the group. Some have argued that the 1985 election was the beginning of a decline in influence of Alliance Quebec, as English-speakers believed the new government was friendlier and so the need for AQ was lower, while the Liberals had more connections with English-speakers than the PQ and so relied less on AQ to transmit their points of view. The group also faced criticism, almost since its founding, that it was not aggressive enough in its demands.
In December 1988, AQ's offices were destroyed in a case of arson
Arson
Arson is the crime of intentionally or maliciously setting fire to structures or wildland areas. It may be distinguished from other causes such as spontaneous combustion and natural wildfires...
. Then-president Royal Orr sued Le Journal de Montréal
Le Journal de Montréal
Le Journal de Montréal is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and is the largest-circulation French-language newspaper in North America. Established by Pierre Péladeau in 1964, it is owned by the Sun Media division of Quebecor Media. It is also Canada's largest tabloid...
and Tele-Metropole, for falsely reporting that he was the "prime suspect" in setting the blaze. The lawsuit was eventually settled out of court.
Middle years — stagnation and infighting: 1989–1998
AQ's weakened bargaining position was brought to prominence in 1989 when the Liberal government passed Bill 178. Although the Liberal Party had campaigned in 1985 to loosen the legal restrictions on languages other than French, Bill 178 overturned the Supreme Court's "Ford" decision (see above), restoring the prohibition on non-French commercial signage (with an exception for small signs inside stores). Alliance Quebec's inability to prevent the adoption of Bill 178 by the Liberal government it had perceived as an ally, opened it to criticism from the anglophone community. Right-wing critics of AQ dubbed it "Compliance Quebec" and "the lamb lobby" for its perceived unwillingness to challenge the government.Internal tension arose among the directors of AQ over whether or not to support the Liberals in the Quebec general election of 1989
Quebec general election, 1989
The Quebec general election of 1989 was held on September 25, 1989, to elect members of the National Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada...
in spite of Bill 178. Some prominent AQ leaders urged a protest vote by anglophones, either by spoiling their ballots or voting for the upstart Equality Party
Equality Party (Quebec)
The Equality Party was a political party in Quebec, Canada, that promoted the use of English in Quebec on an equal basis with French. Four Equality Party members were elected to Quebec's National Assembly in 1989, as part of an anglophone reaction to changes made by the governing Liberals to...
that opposed the Liberals' legislation. The Equality Party won four seats in the National Assembly
National Assembly of Quebec
The National Assembly of Quebec is the legislative body of the Province of Quebec. The Lieutenant Governor and the National Assembly compose the Parliament of Quebec, which operates in a fashion similar to those of other British-style parliamentary systems.The National Assembly was formerly the...
in 1989, but quickly lost its support due to infighting, garnering only 0.3% of the vote in 1994. Rebuffed at the ballot box, some of the Equality Party's remaining active members instead concentrated on winning elected positions in Alliance Quebec in order to have AQ promote the Equality Party's platform (notably, favouring a complete repeal of all mandatory use of French in Quebec, and partitioning Quebec in the event of independence). Public infighting between so-called "moderates" (sympathetic to the Liberal Party) and "radicals" (the remaining members of the Equality Party) within AQ throughout the 1990s, along with a gradual decrease in interest among the general Quebec population in language politics
Language politics
Language politics is a term used to describe political consequences of linguistic differences between people, or on occasion the political consequences of the way a language is spoken and what words are used. It means language can express some authority. Examples include:*Recognition of a...
, led to the marginalization of AQ in the province's politics.
While infighting preoccupied the board of directors and annual convention, the grassroots elements of AQ became less active. Government funding allowed for a permanent staff for the group, which relied less and less on volunteers. AQ's smallest regional chapters, in Quebec's Magdalen Islands
Magdalen Islands
The Magdalen Islands form a small archipelago in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence with a land area of . Though closer to Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, the islands form part of the Canadian province of Quebec....
, Lower North Shore and Baie-Comeau, closed down for lack of members, while six of the group's eight chapters on the Island of Montreal
Island of Montreal
The Island of Montreal , in extreme southwestern Quebec, Canada, is located at the confluence of the Saint Lawrence and Ottawa Rivers. It is separated from Île Jésus by the Rivière des Prairies....
merged in order to avoid closing.
In 1996, the Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec
Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec
The Chief Electoral Officer of Quebec is the official responsible for the administration of the electoral and referendum system in Quebec, Canada....
investigated alleged irregularities during the 1995 Quebec sovereignty referendum, finding among other things that votes in three mainly federalist ridings
Electoral district (Canada)
An electoral district in Canada, also known as a constituency or a riding, is a geographical constituency upon which Canada's representative democracy is based...
had been rejected without valid reasons. Alliance Quebec sued the Quebec government to try to force it to re-examine the rejected ballots in all 125 Quebec ridings. The trial judge ruled against AQ in 2000. AQ appealed, but ceased operations in 2005 (see below). In 2008 the Chief Electoral Officer got the court's permission to destroy the ballots after ruling that AQ's appeal had taken too long.
Final years — radicalization and closure: 1998–2005
In May 1998, the group elected a "radical" president, Montreal Gazette columnist William JohnsonWilliam Johnson (author)
William Johnson, CM is a Canadian academic, journalist and author.Johnson's mother was francophone and his father anglophone and Johnson himself speaks both English and French...
. Previously a vocal critic of AQ, he won by rallying a group known derisively as "angryphones" (mainly members of the tiny Equality Party and some listeners of right wing talk radio shows, particularly the Howard Galganov
Howard Galganov
Howard Galganov was briefly a political activist and radio personality in Montreal during the late 1990s...
show). He in turn supported Equality Party members for positions on AQ's board of directors. Unlike previous presidents, he made no attempt to meet with political leaders, preferring to conduct his lobbying through media, such as on radio talk shows. Also unlike previous presidents, who generally accepted the objectives of Bill 101 and focused on changing how it was applied, Johnson questioned the commitment to tolerance and human rights of those who supported Bill 101.
After his election, Johnson organized two demonstrations against stores, in particular Eaton's
Eaton's
The T. Eaton Co. Limited was once Canada's largest department store retailer. It was founded in 1869 in Toronto by Timothy Eaton, an Irish immigrant. Eaton's grew to become a retail and social institution in Canada, with stores across the country, buying offices across the globe, and a catalogue...
and The Hudson's Bay Company, that did not place English on their in-store advertising (which was once again legal after amendments to the Charter of the French Language in 1994). Johnson told a crowd of demonstrators that he refused an Eaton's offer to put up English signs in their stores if AQ would quietly call off the protest, as Johnson wanted to make it a public issue. Johnson also had AQ's constitution amended to add his view that Canada's federal government should refuse to recognize a Quebec unilateral declaration of independence
Declaration of independence
A declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
. Johnson also made headlines when the Entartistes
Entartistes
The entartistes are a Canadian satirical political group whose members throw cream pies at political and cultural figures whom the group deems to be in need of public embarrassment....
threw a cream pie in his face while he marched in Montreal's 1998 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day parade.
Johnson's presidential campaign and his first six months as president temporarily brought more media attention and members to Alliance Quebec, as the PQ government and Quebec nationalist groups publicly criticized AQ's new, more confrontational tone. However, Johnson called off the group's protests in October 1998 and AQ's media coverage fell considerably, never to recover. Johnson's presidency and those of his similarly minded successors also provoked a negative reaction from the mainstream community of anglophones that formerly supported AQ. Links to the community's key healthcare, educational and community institutions vanished. Several events during these years highlighted the group's lack of support, which ultimately caused it to close down:
- half of the group's board of directors (those not associated with the Equality Party) quit the group en masse in May 1999, calling Johnson "a bully and a publicity hound";
- in a study published in 2000, only 16% of Quebec anglophones named Alliance Quebec as the group that best protected their interests;
- the number of members of AQ declined steadily (4,198 members in May 1998; 2,440 members in August 2001; 1,554 members in December 2003);
- Chapters and affiliated groups severed their ties, including some that removed the word "Alliance" from their names to avoid being associated with AQ;
- the severity of infighting among remaining members increased, sometimes requiring intervention by the courts;
- private donations ($250,000 in the mid-1990s) dropped over 90% from 1998 to 2003, with corporate donations stopping completely;
- the federal government, its main sponsor (providing over 90% of AQ's annual budget), decreased funding to the group by 69% between 2000 and 2004. The first funding decrease (from $934,000 to $634,000 annually) came in 2001 after twenty anglophone groups ended their affiliation with Alliance Quebec and asked for separate government funding through the newly formed Quebec Community Groups Network. A second series of funding cuts (to $200,000 annually) came in 2003-2004 after federal government dissatisfaction with AQ's lack of spending controls and a drop in its membership and influence. When the Department of Canadian HeritageDepartment of Canadian HeritageThe Department of Canadian Heritage, or simply Canadian Heritage |department]] of the Government of Canada with responsibility for policies and programs regarding the arts, culture, media, communications networks, official languages , status of women, sports , and multiculturalism...
finally discontinued its grant in 2005 after AQ failed to produce audited financial statementsFinancial statementsA financial statement is a formal record of the financial activities of a business, person, or other entity. In British English—including United Kingdom company law—a financial statement is often referred to as an account, although the term financial statement is also used, particularly by...
, the group became insolventInsolvencyInsolvency means the inability to pay one's debts as they fall due. Usually used to refer to a business, insolvency refers to the inability of a company to pay off its debts.Business insolvency is defined in two different ways:...
and ceased activity.
Structure
Alliance Quebec was registered as a non-profit association in Quebec, with a headquarters in Montreal. Anyone could join as a member by paying a nominal fee of $5–$10. Membership entitled them to participate in the regional chapter in which they lived. Each regional chapter had its own board of directors and executive and obtained their budget mainly from membership fees.Each chapter could send 9 delegates to the annual convention, which took place each May in Montreal. In the 1990s, six chapters in central Montreal merged, which allowed the merged chapter to send up to 54 delegates. (In the William Johnson era, the West Island
West Island
The West Island is the unofficial name given to the western cities and boroughs of the Island of Montreal, in Quebec, Canada...
chapter's number of delegates was increased to reflect that it was the chapter with the second-largest number of members.) A youth commission of members under thirty years of age also existed and could send up to 18 delegates to the convention. Affiliated groups such as the Townshippers' Association could also send delegates, as could affiliated universities, hospitals and community groups. The outgoing president and board of directors were also entitled to vote at the convention, representing 41 delegates. In theory, an annual convention could have nearly 400 delegates during the 1990s. In practice, the number of delegates attending annual conventions decreased over time as membership fell and affiliated groups stopped participating; the annual convention in 1985 had about 470 delegates while each of the conventions from 1999 onward had under 100 delegates.
The annual convention chose the president and treasurer
Treasurer
A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The adjective for a treasurer is normally "tresorial". The adjective "treasurial" normally means pertaining to a treasury, rather than the treasurer.-Government:...
of AQ for the upcoming year. (In the William Johnson era, the president's term was lengthened to two years, although each subsequent president resigned before the end of their full two-year term.) The delegates would also choose the board of directors. Half of the forty-person board of directors of AQ would be up for election annually for a two-year term; the top twenty candidates who received the most votes being elected. The new board of directors would meet immediately after the convention to choose the remaining executive positions, including vice president
Vice president
A vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...
, vice president "off-island
Island of Montreal
The Island of Montreal , in extreme southwestern Quebec, Canada, is located at the confluence of the Saint Lawrence and Ottawa Rivers. It is separated from Île Jésus by the Rivière des Prairies....
" (meaning from outside of Montreal), secretary
Secretary (club)
Secretary is a title commonly held by a member of an organization, club, or society. Common duties of the Secretary include taking minutes, notifying members of meetings, contacting various persons in relation to the society, administrating the day to day activities of the organization and...
, and chairman of the board
Chairman of the Board
The Chairman of the Board is a seat of office in an organization, especially of corporations.Chairman of the Board may also refer to:*Chairman of the Board , a 1998 film*Chairmen of the Board , a 1970s American soul music group...
. The group also had an "Advisory Council" of prominent anglophones to advise the group on important issues from time to time, but this fell into disuse by the late 1990s.
The executives and directors were volunteer positions (although the president received a stipend
Stipend
A stipend is a form of salary, such as for an internship or apprenticeship. It is often distinct from a wage or a salary because it does not necessarily represent payment for work performed, instead it represents a payment that enables somebody to be exempt partly or wholly from waged or salaried...
.) There were also a number of paid staff members (around two dozen in 1994), such as a general director, a fundraiser, receptionists, researchers and organizers, paid for mainly from federal government grants.
For most of its existence, AQ also maintained committees to study issues. These included (at various times)committees for health and social services, education, youth employment, legal affairs, communication, internal rules, and membership. Some committees organized events and activities. One of these activities, "Youth Employment Services", became independent of AQ in the 1990s and continues to operate. Larger chapters also had some committees, especially in the group's early years.
Presidents
- Eric MaldoffEric MaldoffEric Maldoff is a Canadian lawyer and political advisor. He was a close advisor to former Prime Minister of Canada, Jean Chrétien, and a negotiator on behalf of the Government of Canada from 1995 to 2007, particularly regarding first nations land claims....
(1982–1985) lawyer - Michael GoldbloomMichael GoldbloomMichael Goldbloom is a Canadian lawyer, publisher, and academic administrator. He is the former publisher of the Toronto Star, Canada's largest newspaper in terms of circulation....
(1985–1987), lawyer - Royal Orr (1987–1989), teacher
- Peter M. Blaikie, Q.C.Peter BlaikiePeter Macfarlane Blaikie is a prominent Canadian lawyer and a fluently bilingual statesman from Quebec.-Genealogy:Blaikie was born in Shawinigan, Mauricie on May 10, 1937. He was the son of Kenneth Guy "Bill" Blaikie and Mary Petrie Black....
(1989), lawyer - Robert Keaton (1989–1993), political science professor
- Michael Hamelin (1993–1997), lawyer, Immigration and Refugee Board member
- Constance Middleton-Hope (1997–1998), educator
- William JohnsonWilliam Johnson (author)William Johnson, CM is a Canadian academic, journalist and author.Johnson's mother was francophone and his father anglophone and Johnson himself speaks both English and French...
(1998–2000) journalist, author - Anthony HousefatherAnthony HousefatherAnthony Housefather, was born in Montreal in 1970 and is the Mayor of Côte Saint-Luc, Quebec, a city on the Island of Montreal. He holds a law degree from McGill University, an MBA from Concordia University , and is Executive Vice President Corporate Affairs and General Counsel at a multinational...
(2000–2001), lawyer, municipal politician - Brent TylerBrent TylerBrent Tyler is a lawyer in Quebec, Canada, known for his frequent court challenges to "Bill 101", Quebec's Charter of the French Language temporarily disbarred in November 2011 for not completing the continuing education requirements....
(2001–2004), lawyer - Darryl Gray (2004–2005), member of the clergy
Further reading
- M. Patriquin, Stomping Toward Oblivion, Montreal Hour (February 5, 2004)
- P. Prosperi, The Dynamics of Ethno-Linguistic Mobilisation in Canada: a Case Study of Alliance Quebec (University of Ottawa: December 1995)
- Internet Archive of Alliance Quebec website (1997-2005), aq.qc.ca (defunct)
- Internet Archive of Alliance Quebec website (2003-2005), alliancequebec.ca (defunct)