The Mouvement laïque québécois (MLQ) (unofficially, the 'Quebec Secular Movement') is a
non-profit organisation
A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...
whose goal is to defend and promote
freedom of conscience
Freedom of conscience is the freedom of an individual to act upon their moral beliefs. In particular, it often refers to the freedom to ''not do'' something one is normally obliged, ordered or expected to do. An individual exercising this freedom m ...
,
separation of church and state
The separation of church and state is a philosophical and Jurisprudence, jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the State (polity), state. Conceptually, the term refers to ...
, and
secularisation
In sociology, secularization () is a multilayered concept that generally denotes "a transition from a religious to a more worldly level." There are many types of secularization and most do not lead to atheism or irreligion, nor are they automatica ...
of public institutions in Quebec. It was founded in 1981, developing broader goals from an association devoted primarily to the secularisation of public school curriculum in Quebec.
It won a major victory with ''
Mouvement laïque québécois v Saguenay (City)'' (2015) when the Canadian Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional for the City of
Saguenay, Quebec
Saguenay ( , , ) is a city in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada, on the Saguenay River, about north of Quebec City by overland route. It is about upriver and northwest of Tadoussac, located at the confluence with the St. ...
(or any level of government), to open public meetings with prayers, or to have religious symbols in municipal facilities. The Court said that the state must maintain neutrality in public affairs.
Background
The MLQ believes that
ethics
Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...
and religion should not be united within a single school curriculum. Both are taught in public schools within the "ethics and religious culture" curriculum. The MLQ was founded in 1981 by parents who disagreed with the Quebec public school system including only Catholic or Protestant religious education as requirements of the general curriculum; they thought there should be secular alternatives. The MLQ developed from the AQADER association (Quebec association to ensure the application of the right to be exempted from religious education, or "Association québécoise pour l'application du droit à l'exemption de l'enseignement religieux") founded in 1976. MLQ founders wanted an association whose scope would extend beyond the right to exemption, for instance by promoting values such as free thought. Their goal was secularisation of Quebec public institutions.
In 1987, the MLQ collaborated with senator
Jacques Hébert
Jacques René Hébert (; 15 November 1757 – 24 March 1794) was a French journalist and leader of the French Revolution. As the founder and editor of the radical newspaper ''Le Père Duchesne'', he had thousands of followers known as ''the ...
to prevent the adoption of a private bill that would have enabled
Opus Dei
is an institution of the Catholic Church that was founded in Spain in 1928 by Josemaría Escrivá. Its stated mission is to help its lay and clerical members seek holiness in their everyday occupations and societies. Opus Dei is officially r ...
, a Catholic lay organization, to bypass Canadian fiscal law as a religious institution. In the same year, the MLQ petitioned the Federal Department of Justice to withdraw Bibles from courts, so that solemn affirmations would be recognized as valid.
Parliament has passed numerous bills to secularise public school institutions: the Quebec provincial government abandoned its project to restructure school boards on the basis of religion; the constitution was modified to authorize schools and schools boards to become secular or be founded as such; and in 2008 the government dropped an override clause protecting religious education.
Members of the MLQ have challenged other practices at the municipal level; for instance, in 2006 activists filed complaints against the City of
Saguenay for Mayor
Jean Tremblay
Jean Tremblay (born November 29, 1948) is a Canadian businessman and politician who was mayor of Saguenay, Quebec, Canada, from 2002 to 2017. Before that he was mayor of Chicoutimi since 1996.
Tremblay received international attention from his ...
's practice of saying a prayer before each City Council meeting; they also objected to the presence of religious symbols in chambers used for municipal business, such as the boardroom for the Baie district. The case attracted international media attention and took several years to unfold in the courts. After a lengthy process, the case reached the Canadian Supreme Court, which in April 2015 ruled that the city's practices were unconstitutional, as they violated protections of freedom of conscience and religion. The court said government at all levels must be neutral in its practices.
["Prayers at Quebec city council meetings violate constitutional rights: Supreme Court"](_blank)
''National Post,'' 15 April 2015, accessed 17 October 2015
This association annually grants the Condorcet-Dessaules award to either a person or an organization whose position or actions represent the association's objectives.
MLQ supports the 2019 CAQ government
Bill 21, but they say it doesn't go far enough.
See also
*
Freethought Association of Canada
* ''
Mouvement laïque québécois v Saguenay (City)''
References
Links
Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mouvement Laique Quebecois
Civic and political organizations of Canada
Culture of Quebec
Secularist organizations
Freethought organizations
Awards established in 1993
Organizations established in 1981
Organizations based in Quebec
Atheist organizations
Humanist associations
Secularism in Canada
Secular humanism