Tuesday, February 7, 2023

Turmoil Within The Country

This is the powow dress of Amanda Larocque, a Mi'kmaq fancy dance performer. 


The next thematic area deals with Quebec, and with Francophones generally in Canada. It starts with a jersey and hockey stick belonging to one of the greatest to ever play the game- Maurice "Rocket" Richard, a hero and legend worshiped by fans of the Montreal Canadiens.


Albums by various Quebec musicians are seen together.


One of the more insufferable moments of the 1960s involved a man whose entire life could be summed up by that word. Charles de Gaulle had weaseled his way into power in France by making the absolute most of his reputation from the Second World War. In truth, there was nothing he did of any real note that couldn't have been done by another Free French officer. The man was an insufferable egomaniac, impossible to work with, in love with his own place in history. In short, an asshole. 

He came to Canada on a state visit, went to Montreal, where he gave a speech to crowds from a balcony, and ended up feeding into the sovereignty movement by calling, "vive le Quebec libre!"

This of course set off a diplomatic firestorm, and it wasn't long before the old man was out of the country.

Again: an asshole. If there's any justice, he's roasting in hell right about now, griping about why no one's paying attention to him.


The 1960s had also seen the rise of extremism and terrorism in Quebec. The Front de Liberation du Quebec (FLQ) spent years setting off bombs. Their actions culminated in the October Crisis- the kidnapping of a British diplomat, and the kidnapping and murder of a provincial cabinet minister.


The first referendum on the question of separation ensued some years later. For the no side, the Prime Minister of the country led efforts. Pierre Trudeau is seen here speaking to supporters.


On another screen, the provincial premier, Rene Levesque, the driving force for separation, speaks in turn, creating the effect of a political debate.

42 comments:

  1. The performer costume looks so special and colourful

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  2. Today the costumes would be a wonderful inspiration for the Carnival which has started now in February !

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  3. The powow dress looks something like the Chinese opera show costumes.

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  4. Oh, de Gaulle should reach out and take many German politicians by the hand!!!

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    1. De Gaulle was, to borrow a phrase from Rowan Atkinson, a complete prick.

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  5. ...a fancy dress for a fancy dancer.

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  6. Sería un gran espectáculo, ver a la bailarina bailando, con ese vestido de la fotografía nº 1.

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  7. De Gaulle’s speech lives in infamy.

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  8. I agree with your assessment of Charles De Gaulle.

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  9. The Powwow ensemble is gorgeous. I never heard the DeGaulle story -- I don't know much about him. Interesting.

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  10. I only recognized one, or in fact two artists. The sisters.

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  11. Those were rocky scary times for Canada.

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  12. I really enjoy Pow Wows! Politicians, not so much.

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  13. Stunning dress
    DeGaulle, I remember hearing about him as a kid in the 1950s as a big famous leader.
    Good to read accuracy in history.

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  14. Colorful and creative exhibit ~

    Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,
    A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)

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  15. I wish it wasn't so expensive to travel in Canada, as there is such a lot of it I would love to visit.

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  16. There's always assholes in any country's history sadly, those who get a whiff of power and think they're the greatest.

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