Does official bilingualism foster a common Canadian identity, or does it spur resentment? In his talk, “Bilingualism in Canada: Myth or work in progress?”, French professor Emmanuel Aito will consider the prognosis of official bilingualism as a federal policy. The second installment of the Faculty of Arts’ popular Coffee House Controversies series will take place Thurs., Sept. 28 at 7:30 p.m. in Chapters bookstore behind the Southland Mall (2625 Gordon Road).

Support for bilingualism is mixed. Many in English-speaking parts with small French populations view federal bilingualism as unnecessary. In Quebec, French-speaking nationalists view the policy as hostile to their language and culture; as a result, the province is officially unilingual. While New Brunswick is officially bilingual, other jurisdictions, notably Manitoba and Ontario, provide French language services to French minority populations. In the territories, several aboriginal languages enjoy official status, while Inuktitut is both majority and official language in Nunavut.

Canada’s language laws raise a number of questions: Does official bilingualism facilitate individual bilingualism? Could one cite Canada as a multilingual country and dispense with official bilingualism? Are there ways to determine the economic, political and social costs and/or benefits of language policies?

Coffee House Controversies aims to bring the research interests of Faculty of Arts members to the community. Speakers give an informal 20-minute talk focusing on a controversial topic of interest to the general public. The talks are intended to encourage the open exchange of ideas. Twenty minutes of discussion follows each talk, during which members of the general public can ask questions or raise issues with the speaker or other audience members. The events are free and open to the public. Contact Jamie Browne at 585-4782 for more information.