State neutrality means having a secular state that is not influenced by religion. It is a subject that dates back to the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s when Quebec was quietly breaking away from the influence of the Church in its public institutions such as schools.
In 2006, a deep debate on the secularism of the State and the integration of immigrants took place in Quebec, in particular because of the increasing arrival of immigrants in the province. These immigrants bring a great cultural and religious diversity and certain groups ask to be accommodated according to their religion in the host society that is Quebec. The government must then make a decision that greatly divides the population. This is what we call the crisis of reasonable accommodation. The government then created a broad public consultation, the Bouchard-Taylor Commission, in order to find the ideal compromise between the secularism of the state (state neutrality) and the accommodation of the various religious groups in the population. Following this commission, we advocate for any State employee in a position of authority to wear any religious signs.
It is a debate that is still very present in Quebec civil society and in the National Assembly of Quebec. Just think about the removal of the crucifix from the National Assembly in 2019 or even Bill 21 and the ban on wearing the veil for teachers in Quebec in 2020.
Please write to us again if you have any other questions ! :)
Explanation from Alloprof
This Explanation was submitted by a member of the Alloprof team.
Hello,
State neutrality means having a secular state that is not influenced by religion. It is a subject that dates back to the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s when Quebec was quietly breaking away from the influence of the Church in its public institutions such as schools.
In 2006, a deep debate on the secularism of the State and the integration of immigrants took place in Quebec, in particular because of the increasing arrival of immigrants in the province. These immigrants bring a great cultural and religious diversity and certain groups ask to be accommodated according to their religion in the host society that is Quebec. The government must then make a decision that greatly divides the population. This is what we call the crisis of reasonable accommodation. The government then created a broad public consultation, the Bouchard-Taylor Commission, in order to find the ideal compromise between the secularism of the state (state neutrality) and the accommodation of the various religious groups in the population. Following this commission, we advocate for any State employee in a position of authority to wear any religious signs.
It is a debate that is still very present in Quebec civil society and in the National Assembly of Quebec. Just think about the removal of the crucifix from the National Assembly in 2019 or even Bill 21 and the ban on wearing the veil for teachers in Quebec in 2020.
Please write to us again if you have any other questions ! :)