• News
    • Business
    • Canada
    • Health
    • International
    • Israel
  • Perspectives
    • Ask Ella
    • Ask The Love Rabbi
    • Features
    • Jewish Parenting Wisdom
    • Opinions
    • Ideas
    • Letters
    • Personal Essays
  • Food
  • Culture
    • Arts & Entertainment
    • The Arts
    • Books & Authors
    • Canada 150
    • Jewish Learning
    • June 1967
    • Sports
    • Travel
  • Events
    • Contests
  • Supplements
    • Spotlights
  • Other Communities
    • En Français
    • Russian
  • Subscribe
  • Member Centre
  • Log Out
Search
  • Subscribe
  • Member Centre (eCJN)
  • Log Out
  • Newsletter
  • FaceBook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
CJN - Canada’s largest Jewish newspaper
April 25, 2018 - 10 Iyar 5778
CJN - Canada’s largest Jewish newspaper
  • News
    • Jewish community is prepared, security expert says after Yonge St. attack

      Canadian business accelerator lauded as one of the best in the world

      At 100, Ruth Rotman is still active in the community

      Miles Nadal donates $11 million to Mount Sinai heart centre

      Federal politicians honour victims of the Holocaust

      AllBusinessCanadaHealthInternationalIsrael
  • Perspectives
    • Reflections on my transgender granddaughter

      Non-binary options – how Jewish organizations can be more inclusive of transgender people

      From Yoni’s Desk: Portman deserves the benefit of the doubt

      She loves me, but she doesn’t want me

      Looking at the state of Jewish-Muslim dialogue in Canada

      Bridging the divide between Jews and Muslims in the West

      AllAsk EllaAsk The Love RabbiFeaturesJewish Parenting WisdomOpinionsIdeasLettersPersonal Essays
  • Food
    • The Shabbat Table: Happy 70th birthday Israel

      The Shabbat Table: A special post-Passover garlic shlissel challah

      Everyone gets gooey at downtown matzah bake

      Making matzah balls unites a modern Jewish family, says Phyllis Feldman

      The easy way out of Passover

      Bannock and matzah: our breads of affliction

  • Culture
    • TJFF founder honoured for decades of public service

      Duo’s debut film has satire, music and a dog — sort of

      Exploring the Jewish world at Hot Docs

      Pound’s support of fascism didn’t deter his appeal to American poets

      Blending Caribbean sun and Jewish history in Curacao

      AllArts & EntertainmentThe ArtsBooks & AuthorsCanada 150Jewish LearningJune 1967SportsTravel
  • Events
    • Jewish Music Week Contest

      Chai Lifeline’s Restoring Hope contest (Closed)

      The CJN Prize (CLOSED)

      BRITISH YIDDISH AND KIDDUSH CONTEST (closed)

      The CJN Prize for Young Writers Contest (closed)

      AllContests
  • Supplements
    • Home Beautiful

      CJL Magazine

      Passover Greetings

      Passover Greetings

      MTL Celebrations

      AllSpotlights
  • Other Communities
    • Quel avenir pour les Juifs de France ?

      Israël dans la grande poudrière du Moyen-Orient

      Une entrevue avec Enrico Macias

      L’héritage de Shimon Peres: “Aucun rêve n’est impossible”

      L’intelligence artificielle au service de la robotique

      AllEn FrançaisRussian
  • Subscribe
  • Member Centre
  • Log Out
Home News Quebec Jewish students weigh in on election
  • News

Quebec Jewish students weigh in on election

By
David Lazarus
-
March 31, 2014
1520
0
SHARE
Facebook
Twitter
From left, students Zack Goldig, Meagan Reinish, Denise Felsztyn, and Jeremy Elbaz pose at Hillel House.

MONTREAL — One will be casting her ballot for the first time.

Another is determined to stay in Quebec even if it separates from Canada.

But for four Jewish student voters 11 days before a pivotal provincial election, there was still a lot more consensus than conflict during a CJN interview at the venerable Hillel House on Stanley Street.

Not surprisingly, Denise Felsztein, 18, Zack Goldig, 24, Meagan Reinish, 22, and Jeremy Elbaz, 22 were all pro-federalist and intend to vote that way on April 7.

But they also sensed that there’s a lot more at stake than usual in this election.

All live with their families in safe Liberal ridings.

The students cringed at the idea of a referendum on sovereignty and, like many Quebec voters, complained that the election campaign hasn’t focused on the issues that really count: jobs, the economy, health care and tuition fees.

The students were also in agreement in characterizing the proposed secular values charter as chilling – even scary – in its potential ramifications for religious minorities.

It’s racist and illegal, they said, and panders to intolerance by exploiting anti-Muslim and anti-religious minority sentiment among the Franco-Québécois population, with the worst-case scenario being a Parti-Québécois majority eventually passing the charter – Bill 60 – into law.

If that were to happen, all but Elbaz said they would have to consider making their lives and careers elsewhere.

“I would definitely go,” said Goldig, a law student at the Université de Montréal, while Reinish, a social work student at McGill University, said she would also consider leaving since there’s “so much racism” in the charter.

While Felsztein, a commerce student at Dawson College and a first-time voter, expressed the wish to stay in Quebec, she was undecided about what she would do.

But not Elbaz, a Concordia University political science student who said he would stay no matter what and “fight for my rights here.”

Elbaz said the reaction is “split” when people learn he would stay if Quebec separated, “but I don’t want to be perceived as running away from it,” he said.

“Why would I want to? I’m an integrated Quebecer.”

Tellingly, on the day of the interview – March 26 – there were more reasons for the students to feel encouraged than at the start of the election campaign – at least according to the polls released that day.

They were also grateful to Quebecor head Pierre Karl Péladeau for entering the race and turning what looked like a possible Parti Québécois majority into a possible Liberal majority, all because he had focused on holding another sovereignty referendum in his acceptance speech.

According to the polls, that’s something a large majority of Quebecers don’t want.

News of the PQ’s troubles came as heartening not only to the students, but also to the larger Jewish community, even though Quebec voters are known to be fickle and the tide could swing again by election day.

Elbaz and Reinish noted that the charter appeared to be in line with the policy in France to establish a strict secular approach to state-society relations, but they said it was untenable nonetheless.

Reinish said it would have been much more acceptable for the government to establish “religious accommodation” principles using the guidelines recommended by the Bouchard-Taylor commission, whose report was largely ignored.

If the values charter eventually passes, she said, it might only be a matter of time before it’s also adopted by the private sector and affect not only public workers in regard to banning the wearing of religious articles, but everyone.

Like other voters, the students wished that they had a pro-federalist mainstream party to vote for.

This being the first election Felsztyn is voting in, she’s paying closer attention than previously, but said she has always been aware of Quebec politics.

Elbaz, who is voting for the second time in 18 months, said he been following politics more over the last few years.

Politics always seemed to interest Reinish, who has volunteered for the campaign of Liberal Leader Philippe Couillard as well as politically within the Jewish community.

Goldig, for his part, said he didn’t realize until recently how political he was.

All but Goldig had the opportunity to watch the first election debate, and all seemed most impressed by the forthrightness and articulateness of Québec solidaire leader Françoise David.

“I wish she was a federalist,” Elbaz said.

 

SHARE
Facebook
Twitter
David Lazarus

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

Reflections on my transgender granddaughter

Non-binary options – how Jewish organizations can be more inclusive of transgender people

Jewish community is prepared, security expert says after Yonge St. attack

  • Popular
  • Recent
Subscribe to the CJNSubscribe
RSS FeedView
5,527FansLike
856FollowersFollow
10,111FollowersFollow
197SubscribersSubscribe
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Subscribe / Member Centre (eCJN)
  • eCJN Archives
  • Supplements
  • Media Kit
  • Advertising Terms
  • Premiums

One on One at Comicon with Leo Leibelman

Purim 2018 on Toronto's streets

Baba Fira's CJN Prize Awards invite

  • News
  • Canada
  • Israel
  • International
  • Opinions
  • The Arts
The award-winning Canadian Jewish News (CJN) is Canada’s largest, weekly Jewish newspaper with an audited circulation of nearly 32,000 and read by more than 100,000 people each week.
© Copyright 2018 Canadian Jewish News
  • Comments Policy
  • Community Links
  • Contact Us
  • Media Kit
  • Privacy Policy
  • Subscribe
  • Admin

Week in Review...

Comes Right to You

Sign up for our Weekly Newsletter

X