Interculturalism: A View from Quebec by Gérard Bouchard (review)

In 2008 Gérard Bouchard, the author of this important book, and Charles Taylor, who provides a fine foreword, led the Quebec Commission on Accommodation Practices. This followed the ‘accommodation crisis’, a debate that centred on the degree to which Quebec society should accommodate various cultural practices of its immigrant population. Issues of accommodation have come to the fore since: during the 2014 provincial election the Parti Québécois (PQ) proposed a ‘Charter of Values’, a proposal that was strident in its secularism. And during the 2015 federal election, the Bloc Québécois controversially questioned the wearing of the Niqab in Canadian citizenship ceremonies. That is to say, Quebec has struggled with diversity in recent years, and it is in this context that Bouchard’s contribution should be understood. Bouchard wants to remind his Québécois readers that they already possess an innovative, long-standing and successful model: interculturalism. This book is the most concerted spelling out of that model.

The book proceeds by first establishing the conditions which make interculturalism necessary (chapter 1) before establishing its origins and development, as well as offering a definition (chapter 2). Properly understood, interculturalism is the result of the interaction between majority and minority groups, an interaction between equals, without the presumption of hierarchy. Interculturalism is then distinguished from multiculturalism (chapter 3). Multiculturalism has become a central component of English-speaking Canadian national identity. As Bouchard makes clear, it is entirely understandable that Quebec should depart from this model since it possesses a historic cultural majority. Moreover the accommodation of diversity is further complicated where ‘a majority is itself a minority’ (p. 67). So while multiculturalism works in anglophone Canada it is not appropriate for Quebec. Chapter 4 provides a defence of interculturalism against a series of criticisms. Bouchard argues that interculturalism occupies the middle ground between liberalism and republicanism. It is within this middle ground that Bouchard addresses secularism (chapter 5). He proposes an ‘inclusive secularism’ in which he supports a ban on the wearing of religious symbols by public officials in particular circumstances and favours a charter of secularism. There is a certain republican affinity on display here.

The afterword in which Bouchard reflects on the PQ’s unsuccessful Charter of Values is no less important. In Bouchard’s view, Québécois nationalism is at a crossroads; the PQ’s apparent embrace of republicanism and rejection of pluralism has the potential to ‘end a very successful combination of nationalism and liberalism’ (p. 152). Interculturalism is a reminder of what Quebec has achieved by a nationalism, both sovereignist and federalist, which has attempted to meet the challenge of diversity.

While substantively this book is based on debates in Quebec and Canada, it deserves to be read widely. In other words, this is essential reading for anyone interested in a key question facing both Quebec and Canada. However, Bouchard’s contentions will resonate in several European states where, in response to diversity, there is a need to both recognise the cultural distinctiveness of the host society and the need for integration.