Bon Fete, Quebec!

Today is St. Jean Baptiste Day in Quebec. Partygoers across the province will celebrate their "national holiday" through parades, commemorative events and social gatherings. This is a big deal to our French Canadian brethren -- this tradition can be traced all the way back to ancient France. The first-ever celebration of the day on Canadian soil was in 1636, during the earliest days of the colonization of New France, and the first patriotic celebration of the feast day of St. John the Baptist took place in 1834 in Montreal. Pope Pius X designated John the Baptist the patron saint of French Canadians in 1908, and June 24 became an official holiday in 1925. 

But it was the Parti Quebecois led by Rene Levesque that made June 24 the province's national holiday, thereby tinting the celebration with a political hue that hasn't dissipated since that decision was made in 1977. Throughout the separatist era, the sovereigntists have used Jean-Baptiste as the ultimate expression of their continued desire for statehood -- a muscular exposition of their drive for an independent state.

Sadly, most Quebeckers are disinterested in reigniting the referendum flame. The Bloc Quebecois are in a shambles and utterly irrelevant in Ottawa, the PQ is a leaking ship and plummeting in the polls, and a new political movement led by former PQ cabinet minister Francois Legault is the odds-on favourite to take out Premier Jean Charest's Liberals when the next provincial election is held. 

Legault's pitch? The battle for sovereignty is so 1995. People in our province have more immediate concerns that impact their families, businesses and communities. We need to keep Quebec strong, today. Let's get on with it, d'accord? 

So it is in this spirit that I raise a toast to my Quebecois brothers and sisters. Here's to you having a peaceful, free-spirited and enjoyable holiday. May the French Canadian fact in our country continue to play a strong role in the present and future of Canada. Vive le Canada! Vive le Quebec dans le bon pays du Canada! 

Did I say that right? Pardon my French!