Montréal, January 18, 2018 – The Quebec English School Boards Association (QESBA) is surprised the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) has brought back the losing argument on abolishing school boards in Québec.
“English school boards in our province, and French school boards across Canada, have constitutional protections under Section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Our entire community has successfully fought to preserve their rights and make their voices heard. The education plan presented by the CAQ is an affront to our community and democracy as a whole,” said QESBA President Jennifer Maccarone.
“We will never give up our minority rights. Abolishing school boards has absolutely no benefit to the classroom or our minority community. The priority for any provincial political party should be on student success,” concluded the President.
Our collective community, not only select stakeholder groups, deserve local representation and the right to choose who will be their voice in matters of education. Every taxpayer should be heard and afforded the opportunity to vote. If we truly believe that education belongs to the community, then we can only deduce the proposal of the CAQ is short-sighted with the intent to create division, rather than inclusion and success.
The Supreme Court of Canada rendered a unanimous decision in Mahé vs. Alberta (1990) that supports the QESBA position.
QESBA is the voice of English public education in Québec and represents 100,000 students in 340 elementary, high schools, and adult and vocational centres across Québec.