This kind of take reminds me of all my friends who visit Quebec-outside-of-Mtl for the first time and are surprised to discover that francophones are actually....francophones.

I’m from Levis. 99.9% French small town. You think I learned English by "chance" and "intention" ? https://twitter.com/AngusReid/status/1312541573943422976

And btw there is no English immersion program in Quebec. And the ESL class in high school will get you nowhere near bilingualism, just like with French classes in Ontario or BC.

You need to put lots of effort outside the school system to learn. Like every other Canadian.

If this conversation was based on a real understanding of the work Francophones put in their bilingualism, it would be different.

But there is a chronic underestimation of those efforts in this country, by folks who only know Quebec through Mtl, if at all.

That’s the bias.

And we all know a monolingual French speaker would never be considered for federal positions the way English-only speakers are.

Because the empathy for ‘learning a language is hard’ only goes one way.

That’s the other bias.

(How I actually learned English in a French town:

- Hip hop. If you can understand and sing over that, you’re good.

- Harry Potter. Re-reading in English stories I already knew so I could deduct new words.

- Watching TV i didn’t understand until eventually I understood.)

(Oh, and moving to Toronto for my grad studies where I rushed like hell at the beginning. Because francophone universities accommodate English-speakers, allow you to write your papers in English at first, etc. But the other way around? Bitch please.)

I encourage folks out West to have this conversation with all the Franco youth around you who take minimum wage jobs at ski resorts, hotels, tree planting, fruit picking, etc.

They know unless they delay their studies to do immersion, being a Franco might limit their career.