by Basem Boshra, CTV Montreal
Quebec is ready for a 'quiet evolution' to combat racism, Quebec Premier Francois Legault said Monday.
"We can't just make nice speeches — we have to act," Legault told reporters at the start of his COVID-19 press briefing Monday afternoon in Montreal.
"You know, in Quebec we had what came to be known as 'the quiet revolution' — a period of significant social and political upheaval that transformed Quebec society in the 1960s and early 1970s, Legault said.
Legault has been widely criticized in recent weeks for not conceding that systemic racism exists in Quebec.
And while he again would not go so far as to acknowledge that on Monday, he said he was moved by listening to Black Quebecers' testimonials in recent weeks — including some from Black ministers in his own cabinet, such as Nadine Girault, Lionel Carmant and Christopher Skeete.
"The vast majority of Quebecers are not racists," Legault said. "We have to be clear — we are not here to put all Quebecers on trial — but there is undoubtedly racism in Quebec."
In order to eradicate racism in the province, Quebecers need to work together and avoid divisions, Legault said. "We are all equal — no exceptions," he said.
Legault said he understands that people are fed up with racism and shocked and angered by the death of George Floyd, a Black man, at the hands of white police officers in Minneapolis last month.
That anger and frustration is one of the reasons why his government has not done anything to limit protests against racism and racial profiling by police in recent weeks, Legault said, despite the possible public-health ramifications of such mass gatherings during a pandemic.