The New Nationalism in 21st-Century Quebec
The recent demise of the Crown from Queen Elizabeth II to King Charles III has made the occasional flare ups of active derision toward constitutional monarchy the new normal state of affairs in Quebec and has merged with the powerful current of unilateral autonomism already flowing through Quebec’s politics. Charles III happened to ascend to the throne and become the King of Canada during Quebec’s most recent provincial general election, which provided nationalists and secessionists long tired of the oath of allegiance to the Crown that MNAs-elect must swear to become full-fledged MNAs the perfect political opportunity. The oath of allegiance to the Sovereign in 128 of the Constitution Act, 1867 has become the latest flashpoint in this New Nationalism in Quebec.
In my view, nationalism in Quebec has gone through three distinct stages since Patriation in 1982. This is how I perceive the evolution of Quebec’s politics over the last forty years as a bilingual but not bicultural English-speaker peering in on another world, so you should ingest as many grains of salt as you think fit.