A Forgotten Majority
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Views expressed by individuals in these letters are not necessarily the views of the Anglo Society of New Brunswick
To all of the above public figures,
My name is Sandenn Killoran, I am a 24 year old University graduate and I have made the choice to remain in New Brunswick.
I am the child of two North Shore Parents, both born and raised in what is now the Village of Belledune. I however was born in Grande Prairie Alberta. My father’s work has moved us all over this country from Alberta to Newfoundland; however, one thing remained a constant, this is my home. The economic hardships of this province are not lost on me, and I empathize for the difficult positions that many of you have come into, having to cut back beloved services to insure the ongoing operations of our province is a difficult trial for any public figure. These are difficult days and measures must be taken in order to right the ship that flies proudly on our flag, a flag that flies over all of New Brunswick and not just the 32.4% that the Language Commissioner seems to focus on completely.
I work for my father, primarily because of the innovative nature of his field and the potential for growth, but a large reason for my employment is that a Bachelor’s Degree no longer guarantees you employment, especially not in New Brunswick where work is at a premium. This is compounded with the fact that I am an “Anglophone” and as such government jobs are virtually shut out from my access. All the while the inability to pass a rigorous French competency test for individuals who claim English as their mother tongue makes sure that the majority of the English population is unable to qualify for these secure and well-compensated jobs.
Our province has a rich and diverse history, I know, I studied it. Much of this history is accredited to the contributions that the French speaking population, made throughout our province’s infancy. This is something that we must continue to be proud of and support in terms of celebrating this uniquely New Brunswick identity. Where we cannot afford to support it is with what has become a monopoly of French only cultural and development spending, this 6.5 million dollar expenditure of promoting French culture (only counting budget dollars specifically allotted for French Promotion projects). I say that all of this money is for the French culture, because in the sixty six page report put forward by Commissioner Michel Carrier there is not one mention of promoting the English language. NOT ONE. By his own statistics he places the Francophone population at 32.4%. Meaning that he is literally ignoring 67.6% of the population, and since he is an employee of the New Brunswick Government and as such, he serves the province as a whole, Mr. Carrier by the transitive property is ignoring 67.6% of his job.
In Northern New Brunswick we cannot get Full Time English Courses at CCNB Bathurst because it would be detrimental to the French language, we cannot work at Service New Brunswick unless we pass an excruciating testing process that I am certain that the Premier would fail if he attempted it. However the most disturbing trend that I have noticed since I have grown up is the palpable fear in the English population to stand up and not demand, but even to simply ask for money for cultural events that are based on what is viewed as “English Culture”. This protectionism of the French language has transformed to a deliberate attack on English culture, and more so what are you protecting the French language from, I know a great number of strong proud French speaking individuals who don’t need their government spending millions a year to protect their identity.
In closing if I was a Francophone I would be insulted that the government thinks that I am weak enough to have my identity high-jacked against my will, that the government must pour millions into feel good initiatives whilst cutting healthcare and education for all citizens in the province. More importantly as a English speaking tax paying citizen of this province (placing me among the majority of tax payers) I am especially sick of being treated as a second class citizen, an invisible majority that has to cower and hope that Commissioner Carrier and the Anti Anglophone Agenda leaves some scraps for us to celebrate our culture with, but not to loudly of course, that would be detrimental to the French Language.
Tired of Being Silent,
Sandenn Killoran
P.S I sent an email to Mr. Carrier last week and have yet to hear an explanation for his lack of any English Initiatives in his report.
Views expressed by individuals in these letters are not necessarily the views of the Anglo Society of New Brunswick
To all of the above public figures,
My name is Sandenn Killoran, I am a 24 year old University graduate and I have made the choice to remain in New Brunswick.
I am the child of two North Shore Parents, both born and raised in what is now the Village of Belledune. I however was born in Grande Prairie Alberta. My father’s work has moved us all over this country from Alberta to Newfoundland; however, one thing remained a constant, this is my home. The economic hardships of this province are not lost on me, and I empathize for the difficult positions that many of you have come into, having to cut back beloved services to insure the ongoing operations of our province is a difficult trial for any public figure. These are difficult days and measures must be taken in order to right the ship that flies proudly on our flag, a flag that flies over all of New Brunswick and not just the 32.4% that the Language Commissioner seems to focus on completely.
I work for my father, primarily because of the innovative nature of his field and the potential for growth, but a large reason for my employment is that a Bachelor’s Degree no longer guarantees you employment, especially not in New Brunswick where work is at a premium. This is compounded with the fact that I am an “Anglophone” and as such government jobs are virtually shut out from my access. All the while the inability to pass a rigorous French competency test for individuals who claim English as their mother tongue makes sure that the majority of the English population is unable to qualify for these secure and well-compensated jobs.
Our province has a rich and diverse history, I know, I studied it. Much of this history is accredited to the contributions that the French speaking population, made throughout our province’s infancy. This is something that we must continue to be proud of and support in terms of celebrating this uniquely New Brunswick identity. Where we cannot afford to support it is with what has become a monopoly of French only cultural and development spending, this 6.5 million dollar expenditure of promoting French culture (only counting budget dollars specifically allotted for French Promotion projects). I say that all of this money is for the French culture, because in the sixty six page report put forward by Commissioner Michel Carrier there is not one mention of promoting the English language. NOT ONE. By his own statistics he places the Francophone population at 32.4%. Meaning that he is literally ignoring 67.6% of the population, and since he is an employee of the New Brunswick Government and as such, he serves the province as a whole, Mr. Carrier by the transitive property is ignoring 67.6% of his job.
In Northern New Brunswick we cannot get Full Time English Courses at CCNB Bathurst because it would be detrimental to the French language, we cannot work at Service New Brunswick unless we pass an excruciating testing process that I am certain that the Premier would fail if he attempted it. However the most disturbing trend that I have noticed since I have grown up is the palpable fear in the English population to stand up and not demand, but even to simply ask for money for cultural events that are based on what is viewed as “English Culture”. This protectionism of the French language has transformed to a deliberate attack on English culture, and more so what are you protecting the French language from, I know a great number of strong proud French speaking individuals who don’t need their government spending millions a year to protect their identity.
In closing if I was a Francophone I would be insulted that the government thinks that I am weak enough to have my identity high-jacked against my will, that the government must pour millions into feel good initiatives whilst cutting healthcare and education for all citizens in the province. More importantly as a English speaking tax paying citizen of this province (placing me among the majority of tax payers) I am especially sick of being treated as a second class citizen, an invisible majority that has to cower and hope that Commissioner Carrier and the Anti Anglophone Agenda leaves some scraps for us to celebrate our culture with, but not to loudly of course, that would be detrimental to the French Language.
Tired of Being Silent,
Sandenn Killoran
P.S I sent an email to Mr. Carrier last week and have yet to hear an explanation for his lack of any English Initiatives in his report.