speaking french not always welcome in Montreal (home, living)
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Im Canadian originally an immigrant from a francophone country , french was my first language since my parents came from different ethnic group and the only language they had in common was French, they are both academically very advanced in the language , so i was born speaking a very good and articulate french , i was told this by many friends .
When time comes to speak to a Cashier , store clerks , banks employee and especially especially subway ticket booth , i get a lot of meanness and agressivity , the expression of their face change and then they make this expression is if you come from another planet, i had lately a subway ticket clerk blow a pfffffff for saying to her"je vous remercie" . Things seem to be different when i speak English , i get a lot of helpfulness and politeness .after all these years spent in this city some things remain a mystery to my understanding
This OP is just so weird and very hard to believe. Being treated more rudely for speaking French than speaking English in Montreal is an extremely rare occurrence.
I am especially doubtful because of the reference to subway employees - who are somewhat notorious in Montreal for not wanting to speak in English. You are trying to make us believe they are nicer to you when you speak to them in English than in French? Hard to believe.
I think I know what the OP is talking about and all my life I've wanted to know why. Many years ago in Montreal I found myself treated quite brusquely, even rudely, when I spoke French. Even though my mother was born in PQ and my maiden name is clearly French Canadian, I found people unpleasant. I assumed it was because I studied in France and speak continental French. Another friend, from France, found the same thing. I wish I could solve the riddle because when back in Canada I would adore visiting Quebec again but don't want to if I'm going to be treated like dirt for not speaking the same variety of French. By contrast, the French Canadians I've met while in Mexico are very pleasant, so go figure!
Not to be completely rude, but if you're being treated badly in Montreal, it is NOT because you're speaking French rather than English. ESPECIALLY from transit workers! Two things:
1. Racism exists here. It is the only place I have lived in Canada (BC, Alberta, Montreal) where I have witnessed open racism. I am white/anglo so it hasn't been directed AT me (talk to me about language, tho - heh) but people here, especially some French Canadians, can be vile about different races.
2. If you're speaking French and getting attitude it is much more likely that this is due to a)the person you're speaking to has clocked that you're not speaking Quebecois French with a Quebecois accent (big sin) or b)they have deemed your French imperfect. I wouldn't describe either of these scenarios as common,e xactly, but they do occur, and they're not rare. People who grew up here can hear it instantly when someone is speaking French but isn't from here. For certain provincial idiot types, this is enough of an excuse to be a dick.
After working 30 years in a large factory with 300 employees (90% francophone) you get to hear a lot about what people really think, Most Francophones are great people and fun to be around but theres a certain element in their demographic that is extremely racist.Xenaphobic and intolerant toward any one not fitting in with the their vision of the perfect Quebecoise,these people are usually strong supporters of a separate Quebec,If you are an Anglophone they can be very rude and standoffish and no matter how good your French is you are always considered the Maudit Anglaise.
If you feel you are being disrespected or rudly treated while speaking to some one in your less than perfect French you are probably just dealing with one of these intolerant types who hate all things English..Dont judge all Francophones by the actions of a few ignoramuses.
Not to be completely rude, but if you're being treated badly in Montreal, it is NOT because you're speaking French rather than English. ESPECIALLY from transit workers! Two things:
1. Racism exists here. It is the only place I have lived in Canada (BC, Alberta, Montreal) where I have witnessed open racism. I am white/anglo so it hasn't been directed AT me (talk to me about language, tho - heh) but people here, especially some French Canadians, can be vile about different races.
.
I know you used the qualifier "smart" but isn't this sort of a borderline racist statement in itself?
I am an American who lived in Quebec for 5 years (relocated for my future wife prior to moving away). Talk about racism? Once a week we would go to the old port and walk the historic streets (St. Paul, etc.) One particular evening a Quebecois man in his 50's passed by us and as he stared me down, he mustered in French. "Americans, I hate them today!", and he spat in my face. So, just by my face he could tell I was American, walking with my Canadian wife, and he hated me for it.
This is just one example of hundreds of experiences that I have; absurdities that I would correlate with racism against non-Quebecois. I know some uni-lingual Anglos in Montreal, and they are all limited to minimum waged jobs like scrubbing toilets because they are basically useless in any real work place there. Hell, if you don't speak French, you are pretty much living in the dark ages in a third world country!
I am an American who lived in Quebec for 5 years (relocated for my future wife prior to moving away). Talk about racism? Once a week we would go to the old port and walk the historic streets (St. Paul, etc.) One particular evening a Quebecois man in his 50's passed by us and as he stared me down, he mustered in French. "Americans, I hate them today!", and he spat in my face. So, just by my face he could tell I was American, walking with my Canadian wife, and he hated me for it.
This is just one example of hundreds of experiences that I have; absurdities that I would correlate with racism against non-Quebecois. I know some uni-lingual Anglos in Montreal, and they are all limited to minimum waged jobs like scrubbing toilets because they are basically useless in any real work place there. Hell, if you don't speak French, you are pretty much living in the dark ages in a third world country!
I have noticed that French from France and Americans are usually an easy target of racism . The reason is because they are whites from first world countries and they carry a history of colonialism and discrimination centuries ago, no one would believe them if they say they were victims of racism but this racism is real and I feel really bad for them. I remember reading an article about a French couple who were victims of employment discrimination and I was suprised of the comments on the bottom aprooving this as a historical payback.
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