New Brunswick — In a bid to bring back old-fashioned, pre-Civil Rights segregation, New Brunswick’s Education Minister Serge Rousselle is demanding that students who speak different languages, have various medical conditions, and are of different income levels, nationalities and races, travel on separate schoolbuses.
“It’s very clear by the Supreme Court decision that we need to have distinct buses to segregate our children,” Rousselle said at an early morning press conference.
The controversy began when Kent County officials were forced to admit they had allowed English children to co-mingle with French children on the same bus. The situation became public knowledge when an English student, now identified as Rosy Perkins, refused orders to give up her seat in the English section of the bus after the French section was filled.
Photo by H. Michael Miley
“I have no idea how long this busing arrangement has existed, but it stops now,” demanded Rousselle.
Despite the provincial government heavily investing in bilingualism and multiculturalism, Rousselle believes students who speak different languages or are of different nationalities should not only be required to travel on separate buses and attend separate schools, they also should use separate public toilets, park benches, and even be seated in different sections of restaurants.
“Our Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees that all minorities have their own education system and be able to live in an environment based entirely on their own language and culture,” he said.
In fact, Rousselle told The Manatee he is working on plans to add additional busing systems based on gender, sexual orientation, income level and medical history. “Eventually, all albino transgender Germans will have their own schools and special schoolbuses.”
Provincial NDP Leader Dominic Cardy, who is a strong proponent of the desegregation movement, disagrees. “Schoolbuses are a mode of transportation, not ‘educational facilities’; that places them outside the Charter.” Cardy pointed out that the decision to bus all their students together was made by local Kent County parents to save money and promote friendship between the children.
Rousselle vehemently disagrees with Cardy’s stance on desegregation and has vowed, despite the provincial deficit, to hire more teachers to ride around on schoolbuses to ensure the buses are considered “minority language educational facilities on wheels.”
Rousselle wants to reassure New Brunswick citizens that his motives are in the best interest of kids’ education. “Segregation is about equality and not having children who speak different languages or have different income levels spread scabies or pollute each other’s gene pool.”
Despite the jarring similarities between Rousselle’s stance on segregated busing and the political climate in Mississippi during the 1960s, officials insist they are invested in multiculturalism and bilingualism because it is good for the economy. “When companies come to New Brunswick because of our multicultural and bilingual workforce, every bilingual or multicultural job they create, creates 2 unilingual jobs,” said Commissioner of Official Languages Katherine d’Entremont. “It’s guaranteed 3 jobs in 1!”
When this Manatee reporter asked how more students could become multicultural or bilingual when they are not allowed to see, touch or speak with each other, d’Entremont would only say: “It’s not my job to figure out how to make it happen or even what it costs. My job is just to promote it.”
Until the matter is settled, Kent County officials are asking English and ginger Scottish LGBT students who share buses with colourblind Argentinian and French students with myopia to wear triangular patches of various colours so bus drivers can easily differentiate between them.
Nailed it!
omg,, when did all this crap begin,,,taking us back many many years,,, guessing we voted really bad,really bad,,,had no idea,no warning this was coming,, all the progress that was made is now going down the toilet,,,what have we done,,this is not the New Brunswick i was born and brought up in,what is happening here and how can we stop this,, how,???????
Thank you for shining a light on this stupidity. I wish it was easier to tell the difference between satire and actual facts.
This man is out to lunch is it not 2015?
It’s so that young children that can only speak one language can speak to the bus driver(hire French drivers for French and English drivers for English), like I have a family member that couldn’t talk to a bus driver and the bus driver made him get out of the bus and he was stranded for a while before someone found out where he was. Imagine if your child was hurt because they couldn’t communicate with an all French driver, you be mad? It has happened to many French children before they changed the system
And it’s happened to English kids too. There are too many RACIST BASTARDS in this province.
If someone is born and bred in this country and cannot communicate in English…that would be more sad than being kicked off the bus!! To learn French should be a choice. English is a necessity and unless you plan on never leaving your family, you are setting them up for complete failure…?
As a black person, I find the reference to Rosa Parks and any comparison to the situation in the southern US during the civil rights movement and the situation here in New Brunswick extremely offensive. I understand what you are trying to do, but you are essentially degrading our fight for equal rights to the sheer stupidity of the language laws in New Brunswick.
Ebonhand, it is just a piece of satire. Relax.
I suggest you look up mistrals when you put down Mein Kampf. We’ve been used enough to satirize. Thanks. You can’t get offended because I was only satirizing this situation. I only looked at this piece because somebody told me about how poor taste it was in. You don’t get to tell us what we can be offended about EVER.
it’s a law originally designd to protect English and French speaking people and discriminate against Aboriginals
how is it not alowed to be compared to Blacks fights for equal rights. Aboriginals ate still fighting for what was taken and continues to be taken from them!
I am familiar with the hypocrisy of how the law works. Take a look at Africaville or the horrendous treatment of blacks who settled here. Blacks and natives shared pretty much the same lot, literally. Maybe I am not making my point clear. The English/French debate is a serious issue, but it is not the same sort of situation that Rosa Parks faced, or any of the native or black activists in the Maritime Provinces faced getting their rights. Would you say the issue of bilingual busing is on the magnitude with the fact that the treaties with Natives are so wantonly out of date or nonexistent that it is viewed by most experts as the New Brunswick dragging its feet long enough to rape the provinces resources before they have to share the royalties with the Natives? Cause I don’t and I would say it is insulting or racist to even try to.
Ebonhand I understand what you you saying now
Please tell me Rousselle has been fired. His Ignorance is horrible, Even my 7 year old knows how to treat a person better!
Anyone that is discriminated again can be offended by whatever they want to be offended about. No particular ethnicity, race, gender, or otherwise “owns” being offended. No particular ethnicity, race, gender, or otherwise “owns” the fight for equality. Women are still fighting for equality, for example. Comparing Manatee readers to Hitler is also offensive and in poor taste. ebonhand, I could argue – satirically of course – that your comments are degrading my fight, as a woman, for equality.
Ummmm…. that is the point. Would you find it offensive if of all the ways I could point out how stupid a particular man was, I chose to satirize a feminist? When I could choose say… I don’t know. Half the population that ever lived. I am sorry I cannot find any humor in comparing a ridiculous language law with the fight to end the vestiges of the trans Atlantic slave trade. I can’t laugh off 20 million people taken forcibly from their homes. That half of those people died before reaching North America. It does not titillate me that between 1880 and 1960, 4 to 5 thousand of my people were hung for the crime of being black. That until 1967 the fact that my mother and father would have been criminals for mixing races.
So you will forgive me if I don’t see the knee slapping humor in having all that used as a literary device by what I presume is a white person, viewed by mostly white people. And then being told by white people that I should lighten up about it. But I don’t go around telling rape victims they asked for it either. Have you asked any of your black friends (if you have any) what they think about the above piece? Because it was my white wife who told me about this story and how offended she was by it. I read it and thought. Why?
Actually I am less offended by the piece than the attitude that co-opting other peoples culture for satire is OK. I hope you can sleep to know knowing that we aren’t all stupid apes.
I’d add, I did not mention women in anything I said previously, so that is a straw man argument. Now if you’ll excuse me I have a watermelon to finish off before I go tap dance.
Why make such accommodations for the French speaking? It’s not like they were there first?
This man has to go…….plain and simple……he does not have our childrens best interest at heart……leave our children alone on our buses…..they are friends riding together on a common bus to go to school to learn .now how do we fight this man on this distasteful issue.?
If this is what he believes fine , but you better quit your job (or) not run again. Because people are people – and the people will be voting in the next election to. I call all people to vote . It is not a persons skin color , their different language that they speak, what country they were born in that is the problem. The problem is when ANYBODY THINKS AN ACTS LIKE THEIR HUMAN RIGHTS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THEN SOMEONE ELSE. And if you don’t believe this – get out of OUR CANADA even if you were born here . Don’t be a hater of someone else just because they are sitting beside you breathing in the same are space. Thank you My Lord Jesus Christ that You God!!
Rousselle is such a dumb goofball, is there any way we can impeach him??
I am so ridiculously sick and tired of hearing about how the French need special treatment yet seem to treat no one else with any respect at all – ever travel through Quebec and need help? Gosh, give it a rest, you are no better or no more special than any other culture in this wonderful country of ours – I have been hearing about this crap my whole life. Even if this is a ‘joke’ it is annoying and in poor taste – I cannot even imagine how anyone thought it might be funny to compare language to racism – completely unbelievable and disrespectful to those who have truly suffered cruel and inhumane injustice not to mention pervasive belittlement. This makes me feel even more frustrated that I live in a ‘bilingual’ province where English-speaking is not good enough.
The fact That You loop all french speaking people together because of a trip threw Québec. A massive part of Northern Ontario Is french and threw mamy communities This Is not the case. Its not even the case for large portions of Québec. An uneducated comment to spread nothing but hate. If You loop a group of people together to look down on them based on a select few négative expériences Is extremely dangerous. Hasn t anyone learned from the past
C’est un problème qui existe depuis toujours, on dirait. La seule solution possible, afin de promouvoir l’unité et l’harmonie, est d’éliminer le bilinguisme officiel et de forcer tout le monde à s’exprimer seulement en anglais. On choisi l’anglais parce que c’est la seule langue que tout le monde comprends et parce que la majorité des anglophones n’ont aucune intention de faire l’effort d’apprendre le français. Nous les francophones n’avons aucun droits quand même parce qu’il y a eu une guerre à un certain moment de l’histoire du Canada et nous avons perdu notre pays aux anglais. Il s’agit simplement qu’on reconnaisse notre place secondaire dans ce pays anglais. Comme la dame AprilJ indique ci-haut, ce n’est pas juste qu’on force les pauvres anglophones à parler le français, l’anglais est plus simple et devrait suffire à tout le monde…
Exactly, being a defeated people should carry repercussions, am I right, or am I right? 😉
Political satire now – this is awesome – now you just need the “manetee report” – watch out Rick. Actually this might be your best piece yet. Normally its just fun but this piece is serious in the fact it demonstrates how dumb our segregated school system is – as you point out 1960s – but no surprise as the average newbruswickers is from this era – prob think your manetee article is bang on – great idea lol
Is this an early April fool joke??
Can someone please tell me when we reverted back to THE HILTER ERA ?
Every NATIONALITY WEARING A STAR ( TAGGED ), THE INFIRM PUT TO DEATH. PLEASE OPEN YOUR EYES AS THIS IS GOING TO HAPPEN IN OUR AGE.
If they can SEGREGATE EVERYONE OF US, THEY SURE THE HELL CAN IMPLEMENT THIS ALSO. YOU CAN BE SURE OF THIS.
A statement was made regarding other NATIONALITIES pass these ungodly parasites SCABIES. THIS SCABIES HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE THE DAWN OF TIME, JUST LIKE IMPETIGO, CLAP, ETC. OTHER THAN THE LAST WORD CLAP, YOU CAN GET SCABIES, IMPETIGO, JUST BY TOUCHING AN OBJECT THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN INFECTED BY SOMEONE, AND NO ONE KNOWS WHO HAD THESE BUGS. BOTH SCABIES and IMPETIGO ARE CAUSED BY STAPHYLOCUCCUS, and STREPTOCCUS BUG. IT IS EVERYWHERE. IF YOUR GOING TO GET EITHER ONE OF THESE, and NOT KNOWING WHO HAD THESE BUGS TO BEGIN WITH, YOU WILL BE INFECTED.
PLEASE, STOP WITH THE PROPAGANDA, GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT. WHITE, BLACK, INDIAN, and ANY OTHER NATIOALITY CAN SPREAD THESE HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS DISEASE. NOT ONE NATIONALITY IS IMMUNE TO THIS DISEASE, and NOT ONE NATIONALITY CAN THE BLAME BE PUT ON FOR SCABIES OR IMPETIGO. ALL OF US ARE PRONE TO GET IT.
NOW, AS FOR WEARING A NATIONALITY STAR ( HILTER MOVEMENT ) IS ABSURD.
YOU WILL BE TEACHING OUR CHILDREN TO FEAR ANY OTHER NATIONALITY OTHER THAN THEIR OWN. WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. HOW THE HELL CAN A CHILD COMPREHEND THE RIGHT FROM WRONG IF THEY DO NOT HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO JUDGE FOR THEMSELVES. YOU ARE POISONING OUR CHILDREN WITH THIS MIND SET and PROPAGANDA.
HAVE WE NOT LEARNED ANYTHING FROM THE PAST ? I GUESS NOT, AS THAT’S WHERE COUNTIES, GOVERNMENT, CITIES, ETC, ACTUALLY WANT THIS TO HAPPEN , SO THAT THESE BIG WIGS KNOW EXACTLY HOW MANY WHITES, FRENCH, ENGLISH OR ANY OTHER NATIONALITY, TO KNOW HOW MANY THERE ARE. WITH THIS KIND OF SEGREGATION, THEY WILL KNOW HOW MANY OF SO and SO THERE ARE.
NOW, IF A WAR BREAKS OUT, SAY BY THE FRENCH, THE GOVERNMENT WILL WALK IN and PUT ALL FRENCH IN WAR CAMPS. THIS WAS DONE BY THE US GOVERNMENT UNTIL THE WAR HAD ENDED. THIS MENTALITY SHOWS JUST WHERE THE GOVERNMENT WANTS US TO THINK. IT’S CALLED FEAR MONGERING and PROPAGANDA, and OOOOOH HOW FEAR MONGERING and PROPAGANDA IS CONTAGIOUS, NO ONE TRUSTS ANY ONE.
LAST NOTE ON THIS, HARPER ( HARP ) , YOUR ALWAYS HARPING ( HARP ) ON HOW YOUR GOING TO CHANGE THIS COUNTRY FOR THE GOOD.
FUCK YOU AND THE HORSE YOU RODE IN ON. GET OUT WHILE YOU STILL CAN. LEAVE THIS COUNTRY ALONE, YOU EMBECILE, YOU EMBEZZLER YOU LIAR, YOU THIEF.
WITH THAT SAID, and EVERY CANADIAN KNOWS THIS, WHY THE FUCK WAS HE VOTED BACK IN ? IT SURE THE HELL WASN’T A VOTE BY ME, I SPOILED THE BALLET. THAT MEANING ONE PIECE OF SHIT IS NO DIFFERENT THAN ANOTHER PIECE OF SHIT. SHIT IS SHIT NO MATTER HOW YOU TRY TO PRETTY THINGS UP. EVERY POLITICAL PARTY IS SHIT !
Is this an early April fool joke??
I just don’t understand why we have to segregate French kids from English kids. Isn’t this province suppose to be Bilingual…Then how are our kids to learn both languages in a normal setting (instead of classroom) which is the language most used. I am a parent of 2 french immersion kids who because they only speak french in school and not with there friends they are not learning to there full potential, If they were able to have the opportunity to make friends with Francophone’s there french language would be stronger. Kids make friends on buses.
terrible, shameful and discusting. taking our country back pre civil war./
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In God’s eyes we are all equal! Is it any wonder there are s o many wars with an attitude like this. When I was a child in Woodstock I played with black children and there color wasn’t important! I believe the French people should have equal rights, but it’s gone way past that. How can we live and get along when we have people representing this province with this kind of insight. May the Lord bless them! and