PrintJanuary 31, 2007
The heroes of Herouxville (updated)
Kudos to the mayor and six city counselors of Herouxville, a small community northeast of Montreal. Fed up with the demands of immigrants that the city change its values to accommodate them -- can you guess the religion of these demanding immigrants? -- the city has published a set of standards that is, well, priceless:
We would especially like to inform the new arrivals that the lifestyle they left behind in their birth country cannot be brought here with them and they would have to adapt to their new social identity...
We consider that men and women are of the same value. Having said this, we consider that a woman can: drive a car, vote, sign checks, dance, decide for herself, speak her peace, dress as she sees fit respecting of course the democratic decency, walk alone in public places, study, have a job, have her own belongings and anything else that a man can do.
However, we consider that killing women in public beatings, or burning them alive are not part of our standards of life.
We listen to music, we drink alcoholic beverages in public or private places, we dance and at the end of every year we decorate a tree with balls and tinsel and some lights. This is normally called "Christmas Decorations" or also "Christmas Tree" letting us rejoice in the notion of our national heritage and not necessarily a religious holiday.
For the longest time boys and girls have played the same games and often play together. For example, if you came to my place we would send the kids to swim together in the pool, don't be surprised this is normal for us.
You would see men and women skiing together on the same hill and the same time, don't be surprised this is normal for us....
Read the entire document; it gets better as it goes. (Click on the Avis Public link at the city's website and scroll down to the English version in .pdf format).
And let's get our own municipalities to follow the lead of His Honor Mayor Martin Petigny and his six splendid counselors. They've set a set of standards for us all.
We would especially like to inform the new arrivals that the lifestyle they left behind in their birth country cannot be brought here with them and they would have to adapt to their new social identity...
We consider that men and women are of the same value. Having said this, we consider that a woman can: drive a car, vote, sign checks, dance, decide for herself, speak her peace, dress as she sees fit respecting of course the democratic decency, walk alone in public places, study, have a job, have her own belongings and anything else that a man can do.
However, we consider that killing women in public beatings, or burning them alive are not part of our standards of life.
We listen to music, we drink alcoholic beverages in public or private places, we dance and at the end of every year we decorate a tree with balls and tinsel and some lights. This is normally called "Christmas Decorations" or also "Christmas Tree" letting us rejoice in the notion of our national heritage and not necessarily a religious holiday.
For the longest time boys and girls have played the same games and often play together. For example, if you came to my place we would send the kids to swim together in the pool, don't be surprised this is normal for us.
You would see men and women skiing together on the same hill and the same time, don't be surprised this is normal for us....
Read the entire document; it gets better as it goes. (Click on the Avis Public link at the city's website and scroll down to the English version in .pdf format).
And let's get our own municipalities to follow the lead of His Honor Mayor Martin Petigny and his six splendid counselors. They've set a set of standards for us all.
Update: Our friends at Ummah News Links have discovered that not all Canadian approve. The Globe and Mail writes:
“It is totally distasteful to see someone using this kind of writing and putting it in a public domain, and this is not just an ordinary someone, these are people in authority,” said Salam Elmenyawi, president of the Muslim Council of Montreal.
Critics urged Quebec Premier Jean Charest — who called the standards an “isolated case” earlier this week — to strongly denounce the town officials. They also want the mayor and councillors to apologize and retract the document. [....]
“It tries to make a mockery of this whole debate about reasonable accommodation, and it tries to say that these are our rules and if you don't like them, don't come here,” said Steven Slimovitch, national legal counsel for B'nai Brith Canada. “The whole tone of the document, and it says so quite clearly, is that this is the law of the strong.”
