OTTAWA—Catholics and others of faith who have been stunned by the anti-religious freedom nature of a recently enacted Quebec law are not getting much support from Canada’s federal party leaders.
In fact, one party leader, the Green Party’s Elizabeth May, thinks even talking about Quebec’s Bill 21 during a federal election is a waste of time that takes away from her more pressing issue – global climate change.
Voters were out of luck if they were hoping federal party leaders would take a principled stand against Quebec’s religious symbols law at the final leadership debate of the campaign held in French on Oct. 10.
All the federal leaders, except Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said Quebec’s religious symbols law is a provincial matter that they and any government they lead will stay out of.
While Trudeau, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer, and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh all expressed disagreement with the Quebec law, only Trudeau indicated a government led by him may eventually take action through the courts. Quebec has invoked the notwithstanding clause of the Canadian Constitution in an effort to shield the law from court challenges.
Trudeau has continually raised the possibility of the Canadian government assuming a role in challenging the Quebec law, both on the campaign trail and at the English and French language debates last week, but exactly what a Canadian government could do is not something he has addressed in detail.
Trudeau has pointed out that there are ongoing court challenges to the law already underway at the Quebec Superior Court level and any federal government intervention would only come, if at all, after those cases are dealt with.
“It’s awkward politically because it’s very popular,” Trudeau said of Quebec’s Bill 21 and support within that province for the law. “But I’m the only one on this stage who has said, yes, a federal government might have to intervene on this.”
While Trudeau said “Canadians expect” the federal government to stand up for all Canadians’ constitutional rights, such as freedom of religion, both Conservative leader Scheer and the NDP’s Singh appeared to wash their hands of the matter as a provincial issue during the Oct. 10 debate.
Bill 21 became law in that province in June, and all public opinion polls in Quebec have shown it has widespread public support. Under the law’s regulations, all public workers in Quebec such as teachers and police officers and other representatives of the state are banned from wearing any religious symbols while they are performing their duties, which means a Catholic teacher, as an example, cannot wear a crucifix.
As well, the NDP’s Singh, as a Sikh man who wears a turban, would not be able to work in most of Quebec’s public sector.
At the recent Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops Plenary Assembly in Cornwall, a Quebec bishop conceded during a discussion about religious freedom issues that the Quebec law is “extremely popular” in that province.
Rabbi Reuben Joshua Poupko, who is from Montreal and participated in the CCCB’s religious freedom panel discussion in September, said Bill 21 enjoys “overwhelming support” across Quebec and that Quebec’s secularism debate has “poisoned the religious environment.”
As Green Party leader Elizabeth May said, echoing the stand taken by most of the federal leaders, “I think that’s an issue for Quebec and Quebecers.”
