New documentary explores legal battle to protect English-language education in Quebec
Posted April 10, 2026 12:54 pm.
Last Updated April 10, 2026 10:39 pm.
The Quebec English-speaking Communities Research Network (QUESCREN) has released a new documentary exploring the legal battle waged by the English-language education sector against the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ).
The 17-minute film called Section 23 and the Legal Challenges Concerning English-Language Education in Quebec, highlights debates around interpretation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms which guarantees minority-language education rights.
“What we’re seeing right now, and especially since the election of the CAQ government, is that we’re seeing more cases being brought to the forefront of our judicial system using Section 23, which essentially is the provision that protects the laws of minority language communities to be able to be instructed in their own language,” said Anita Aloisio, the film’s director and a research associate at QUESCREN.
“People recognize that the government can impose rules, but they have to do so in equilibrium with the minority. So when the minority asks something, they don’t try to take away from the majority,” added Raphaël Gani, Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Education, Université Laval.
It highlights key challenges including legislation on secularism, the abolition of elected school boards, and efforts to strengthen the Charter of the French Language.
“Currently the English-speaking community is feeling like their rights are being compromised, and especially their rights to an equilibrium of having access to English language education and services,” said Aloisio.
The film draws on research connected to Concordia University, which also co-organized the conference featured in the documentary.
Aloisio said she hoped the film helped people to better understand Section 23 and what’s at stake.
“This project showed me just how contested (Section 23)’s interpretation remains, and how concrete the consequences of these issues are for the English-language education sector in Quebec,” Aloisio said.
The documentary brings together perspectives from academics, legal experts, and community representatives who gathered last spring at a conference held as part of the Acfas Congress. It includes interviews with Thomas Mulcair, Raphaël Gani, Julius Grey, Guillaume Rousseau, Marion Sandilands, and Stephen Thompson.
