Just when you thought most journalists in Quebec are a bunch of hopeless native-bashers, one magazine is making an effort to build bridges between Quebecers and aboriginal peoples.
In its latest issue, l’aut journal, a monthly magazine catering to Quebec nationalists, denounces the Bloc Quebecois for “Indian Bashing” and praises Crees for alerting Quebecers to the flaws of their government’s energy policies.
“Yet again, the Crees are far ahead of Quebec society,” says an article in the April issue of the magazine, which has a circulation of 15,000. “By demanding the annulation of the ‘shared’ risk contracts [between Hydro and aluminum companies], they are the first to say out loud what many think to themselves and to show that we’ll have to sooner or later come to terms with the enormous losses cause by these contracts.
“By showing that such a gesture wouldn’t be any different than unilaterally opening collective labour agreements (a common practice of the PQ and Liberals), they have given a lesson to the most sophisticated lobby groups in Quebec.
“One day, when the great anti-aboriginal hysteria wave has passed, we’ll have to give to Caesar that which is Caesar’s. The Crees have rendered an enormous service to all Quebecers by considerably slowing the Great Whale project. It’s thanks to Crees if today we’ve started thinking about energy efficiency.”
