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The Quebec Referendum of 1980

The Quebec Referendum of 1980. A Quebec Divided. By Gourvjit Toor and Konstantin Rabich. Introduction.

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The Quebec Referendum of 1980

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  1. The Quebec Referendum of 1980 A Quebec Divided By Gourvjit Toor and Konstantin Rabich

  2. Introduction • Tuesday, May 20th 1980, the Parti Quebecois, led by Rene Levesque, started a referendum attempting to gain sovereignty for the province of Quebec. At the time, Quebec strongly favored separation from the rest of Canada. René Lévesque would be the man to lead them through sovereignty, but Pierre Trudeau stepped up against Rene Levesque and put a stop to his plans, fighting to maintain a united Canada.

  3. Table of Contents • The Beginning of the Referendum • René Levesque Biography • Trudeau vs. Levesque • Circumstances in Quebec • The Referendum Question for May 20, 1980 • Oui vs. Non: The Arguments on Both Sides • The Effect on Quebec Society • The Result and its consequences

  4. The Beginning of the Referendum • There were 2 strategies: • René Lévesque’s, of taking Quebec out of Canada to solve age-old conflicts • Pierre Trudeau’s, who believed that the federal government could deal more effectively with language and other rights issues if Canada had control of its own Constitution. • Only one of these 2 strategies could prevail

  5. René Lévesque • Born August 24th, 1922 • Founder of Parti Quebecois • 23rd Premier of Quebec • (November 25, 1976 – October 3, 1985) • First French Canadian to attempt to achieve political independence for Quebec • Was the oldest of his four siblings • He was the first French-Canadian political leader since confederation to attempt, through a referendum, to negotiate political independence for Quebec. • Levesque used to be a reporter and was with the allied troops during WWII. He took pictures and reported on his findings. • Died November 1st, 1987, death most likely linked to his smoking habits

  6. Trudeau vs. Lévesque • Levesque wanted to achieve sovereignty for Quebec • Trudeau opposed sovereignty for Quebec • Long debates between Levesque and Trudeau took place • The two opposed sides came to be known as “Oui” and “Non” sides • Levesque spearheaded the “Oui” campaign because he was for sovereignty • Trudeau was a key member of the “Non” side against Levesque • Although Levesque and Trudeau were on opposing sides, they had some uncannily similar characteristics • Both were bilingual, intelligent, and dedicated to politics • Trudeau offered a compromise by promising a new constitutional agreement if it stayed in Canada.

  7. Circumstances in Quebec • In November 1979, a White Paper, “Quebec/Canada: A New deal was published by the Parti Québécois • It proposed soveignty-association (meaning Quebec would retain an ongoing connection with Canada) • It also proposed four agencies for areas such as currency and justice. • Only Quebec would be able to make laws, levy taxes, and grant citizenship for itself. • This paper’s opposition came in the form of Claude Ryan’s (Quebec Liberal Party leader) report, “A New Canadian federation” • It outlined the advantages of the Canadian Federation for Quebec, while also demanding changes in Canada’s structure.

  8. The Referendum Question: May 20th, 1980 • "The Government of Quebec has made public its proposal to negotiate a new agreement with the rest of Canada, based on the equality of nations; this agreement would enable Quebec to acquire the exclusive power to make its laws, levy its taxes and establish relations abroad — in other words, sovereignty — and at the same time to maintain with Canada an economic association including a common currency; any change in political status resulting from these negotiations will only be implemented with popular approval through another referendum; on these terms, do you give the Government of Quebec the mandate to negotiate the proposed agreement between Quebec and Canada"

  9. The Referendum Question: May 20th 1980 - The Voting • A vote was called to determine whether Quebec should separate from Canada or not. • Based on the Referendum Question, the only options on the ballot were “Oui” and “Non”. • “Oui” meaning in favor of sovereignty, and “Non” meaning against.

  10. Oui vs. Non: The Argument on Both Sides • Obviously, most of the English Canadians and Anglophones in general were against such a separation • On the other hand were loyal and proud French Canadians and (especially) the Francophones who believed remaining with Canada would destroy what heritage, culture, and language French Canada had left • The Oui side was led by René Lévesque with the PQ, and the Non side by Claude Ryan, the leader of the Quebec Liberal Party

  11. Oui vs. Non: The Argument on Both Sides • René Levesque knew how to get the media’s attention, as carefully studied and planned his events around the media deadlines so as to optimize publicity • Ryan would give unsure, overly pessimistic speeches that were to offense-oriented • Also campaigning the Non side were Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, Federal Justice Minister Jean Crétien, and the Speaker of the House of Commons, Jeanne Sauvé

  12. Effects of the Referendum on Quebec Society • Even though Quebec remained a part of Canada, there were still those, and at 40% a lot of people in Quebec, who thought that Quebec should gain sovereignty. • This caused a separation in society among Quebecers. • Through the referendum, separation between the two opinion had grown stronger because such a huge deal was made over it. • The voting process was also what caused social groups to oppose each other. The direct opposite opinions of “Oui” and “Non” were also partly what separated society.

  13. The Results and Consequences of the Referendum • On the day of the referendum, May 20, 1980, voter turnout was extremely high with about 82 percent of registered voters in Quebec showing up and filling out ballots • In the end, the Non side of the 1980 Quebec Referendum won, with 59.4 percent of the vote, while the Oui side managed just 40.6 percent. • However, as Trudeau knew, separatism in Quebec was still far from dead • Despite the referendum, the Parti Québécois were re-elected in 1981 • Even though Levesque got outvoted in the referendum, he tried again to gain sovereignty for Quebec in the 1980s

  14. The Quebec Referendum of 1980: Conclusion • Quebec sovereignty was a very unlikely thing to happen. Rarely does a province or state ever separate from a country. Even with the referendum question strongly leaning toward the “Oui” side, it still failed. There were so many other politicians against sovereignty, that even though Levesque had most of Quebec behind him and a poor opposition public figure, there was no success in sovereignty.

  15. Bibliography • http://www.lilith-ezine.com/articles/2005/nonoui.jpg • www.wikipedia.org • www.search.com • www.madkid.leonardo.it • www.moonbattery.com/archives/quebec-flag.jpg • History Textbook- Canada: Our Century

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