Catholics, Muslims and secularists in Quebec: Citizenships in tension in the aftermath of the Quiet Revolution
A two year project between the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies and CURA has resulted in a series of blog post articles on topics of “Global Migration and the New Cosmopolitanisms: Religion, Public Ethics, and Citizenship in Plural Societies”.
Find researcher Azeddine Hmimssa’s article on “Catholics, Muslims and secularists in Quebec: Citizenships in tension in the aftermath of the Quiet Revolution” on the University of Notre Dame’s blog Contending Modernities.
Here’s an excerpt from Azeddine’s article:
“The introduction of a proposed “Charter of Quebec values” by the Government of Quebec on September 10, 2013 was as a major event which can be considered part of a long process of secularization in Quebecois society, dating back to the so-called “Quiet Revolution” of the 1960s, which achieved its last success in the late 1990s by denominating schools based on languages (French versus English) rather than religion (Catholic versus Protestant). Throughout its history, Quebecois society has been strongly tied to the Catholic Church, which historically maintained a powerful presence in education, healthcare, and even political parties. In the wake of the “Quiet Revolution”, French Canadians, who represent the majority of the province’s Catholics, have become less religiously observant. At the same time, the Quebecois national movement that had its birth within a Catholic movement—“Action sociale catholique,” which was active between 1905 and 1962—has itself become increasingly secular.”