Volume No. 33 Issue No. 3
TRIBUNE THE mcgill
Published by the Tribune Publication Society
curiosity delivers
TAKING THE 'SCIENCE' FROM SCIENCE FICTION p 10
WHERE'S MY TUITION GOING? P5
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Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Quebec Charter faces opposition in McGill community Professors start awareness campaign; Principal Fortier says limit to religious symbols âruns contrary to our principlesâ
Rex Brynen wearing a kippah, Darin Barney wearing a cross necklace, Catherine Lu wearing a hijab, and Benjamin Forest wearing a cross necklace. (Alexandra Allaire / McGill Tribune)
Sam Pinto News Editor The Parti QuĂ©bĂ©coisâ (PQ) proposal to ban public sector workers from wearing religious symbols in government workplaces has faced criticism this past week, including an opposition campaign run by several McGill professors, protests in Montreal, and criticism from political leaders across Canada. If enacted, the Quebec Charter of Values would ban public sector workers from wearing religious symbols in government workplaces, including turbans, kippahs, and large crosses. Public sector workers who may be affected include provincial court justices, teachers, civil servants, university staff, health-care workers, and municipal employees. In addition, the Charter would require that oneâs face be uncovered when providing or receiving a state serviceâa clause which could include students, although exact details have not yet been released. Effects on McGill As a university, McGill would have the opportunity to opt out of the ban every five years, which could be achieved through a vote in Senate. Although Principal Suzanne Fortier addressed McGillâs stance
on the issue on Tuesday, she did not directly identify the course of action that McGill will take in response to the proposition. âThe university must remain a place for the free and full exchange of ideas,â she said. âThe proposal to prohibit our professors and staff from wearing visible religious symbols runs contrary to our principles. The wearing of such symbols in no way interferes with the religious and political neutrality of McGill as an institution.â According to the Vice-President University Affairs of the Studentsâ Society of McGill University (SSMU), Joey Shea, McGill can address the Charter in several different ways. â[The Senate] can comment publicly on the legislation, they can officially oppose it via their internal governance processes or they could do nothing at all,â she said. âFor example, a motion could be brought forth to Senate by a senator asking the Senate to officially denounce the legislation. However, Senate deals with the academic activities of the University, so such a motion would have to be framed within these terms.â Shea said she expects Fortier to mention the issue at the first Senate meeting of the semester on Sept. 18.
Since the Charterâs official announcement last Tuesday, the proposal has stimulated debate from both professors and students on campus. If McGill does not opt out, professors and university staff would be unable to wear certain forms of religious symbols to work. On Saturday, many McGill students participated in a Montrealwide protest against the Charter. âMcGillâs got to fight this,â said Thomas Leenders, a PhD student in religious studies who attended the protest. âMcGill as an institution has to have the interest of its employees and its students at heart, and [âŠ] fight this policy of discrimination against religious minorities.â According to SSMUâs constitution on General Assemblies (GAs), SSMU cannot take an official stance on an external policy that does not directly affect the acitivites of students. However, according to Samuel Harris, Vice-President External, SSMU can find other ways to take a stance on the issue. âCouncil can mandate the VP External to write a letter to the Quebec Government or a letter to the City of Montreal, expressing a certain point of view,â Harris said. âI see it as a good opportunity to go to the GA to actually debate [the Charter], because nobody Iâve talked to
doesnât want to take a strong position on this.â Professor organizes campaign to promote awareness Catherine Lu, a political science professor at McGill, started a campaign last week that calls on professors to wear visible religious symbols to classes and lectures as an act of protest and to create awareness for the issue. Lu, who identifies as an atheist, wore a hijab to her classes last week and said she plans to continue wearing it next week to raise awareness and generate discussion in her classes. âI also take it off once I leave the classroom, so in no way am I adopting a religion and pretending to be someone who is faithful to a religion,â she added. âItâs clearly a kind of instructive act and a kind of protest because of the context of the proposed charter, which says people should not be wearing such things in the context of a classroom.â Several professors from McGill have expressed support for Luâs campaign, including Rex Brynen, Benjamin Forest, and Darin Barney, who have all agreed to participate in the campaign. However, Lu has also received some criticism. âSome people who actually do subscribe to certain religious prac-
tices and beliefs [...] worry that this kind of idea might lead to a kind of trivialization of religious belief and practice, so they worry [âŠ] that maybe some people would just make fun of it, or find it comical because obviously Iâm not Muslim,â Lu explained. However, Lu said that she does not think that McGill should opt out of the legislation if it passes, saying that this action would legitimize the bill. The Charter While it has already been met with opposition, the Charter has a long way to go before it can pass as legislation. The PQ is a minority government, which means that they need support from other parties in order to pass it. The Charter will be tabled by the PQ at the National Assembly and ready for debate within the next couple of months. According to Bernard Drainville, the National Assembly minister in charge of developing the Charter, the purpose of the proposal is to enforce Quebecâs secularism. âIf the state is neutral, those working for the state should be See âQuebec Charterâ on p. 3