Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism
The Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism (French: Commission royale d’enquête sur le bilinguisme et le biculturalisme, also known as the Bi and Bi Commission and the Laurendeau-Dunton Commission) was a Canadian royal commission established on 19 July 1963, by the government of Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson to "inquire into and report upon the existing state of bilingualism and biculturalism in Canada and to recommend what steps should be taken to develop the Canadian Confederation on the basis of an equal partnership between the two founding races, taking into account the contribution made by the other ethnic groups to the cultural enrichment of Canada and the measures that should be taken to safeguard that contribution".[1]
Also known as
- Laurendeau-Dunton Commission
- Bi and Bi Commission
19 July 1963 – 1970
The Commission was jointly chaired by André Laurendeau, publisher of Le Devoir, and Davidson Dunton, president of Carleton University. As a result, it was sometimes known as the Laurendeau-Dunton commission.
Ten commissioners representing each of the provinces were also included in the commission as areas such as education were provincial responsibilities.
Background[edit]
Throughout the Quiet Revolution, modern Quebec nationalism rose as the federation-wide French Canadian nationalism became less and less supported by the younger Francophone generations of this province. The failure of Canada to establish the equality of the English and French languages within governmental institutions is one of main reasons for the rise of the Quebec secessionist movement.
The Commission recommended sweeping changes when its final report was published, in five parts, 1967-1970, after a report of preliminary findings, February 1965. Among other things, it reported that Francophones were underrepresented in the nation's political and business communities. 1961 statistics of the salaries of Quebec men based on ethnic origin revealed that French Canadian incomes lagged behind all other ethnic groups, with the exception of Italian Canadians and aboriginal Canadians.
- The recommendations included the following:
Cultural legacy[edit]
While in some circles the Commission's legacy is controversial, others view it as a success. The under representation of French-Canadians in positions of power is less of a problem and French-Canadians have access to government services in their own language.