Can’t blame them for trying
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Updated: July 02, 2009 8:38 AM
Editor:
Throughout Canadian history, substantial minority language groups have tried to have the public school system maintain or advance their own languages, with taxpayer support, of course. One look back in time can be interesting.
In 1850, Gaelic was the third most commonly spoken European language in what is now Canada, spoken by as many as 200,000 of both Scottish and Irish origin, or one out of every 10 non-aboriginal inhabitants. By 1890, 21 per cent of Canadian senators and 12 per cent of MPs spoke Gaelic.
In 1879, my great-grandfather John A. Morrison was a Member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly. During a debate as to whether French should be taught in the Nova Scotia schools, a proposal that he did not oppose, he suggested that it was equally appropriate to teach Gaelic. He made his speech entirely in Gaelic and he must have had to get a ruling from the Speaker to allow him to do so.
He was not successful on that proposal, and I expect that the present proponents of Mandarin immersion will not be either, but, as they say, you can’t blame them for trying.
Ian MacLeod
Richmond
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