PQ says multiculturalism is not part of Quebec’s values
The Quebec provincial legislature voted unanimously on Wednesday to ban Sikhs from carrying their kirpans into the National Assembly. The Liberal government supported the motion tabled by the Parti Québécois a month after four Sikh men, who had been invited to testify in favour of the right of Muslim women to wear the hijab when receiving government services, were prevented by security from entering the government building while wearing kirpans. PQ MNA Louise Beaudoin asked Sikhs to make a “little bit of effort,” emphasizing that while multiculturalism may be a Canadian value, it is not so in Quebec. The Bloc Québécois has similarly raised the issue of the kirpan at the federal level, but there is little appetite for such a debate. Liberal MP Navdeep Bains wears a kirpan in the House of Commons, and has criticized the Bloc for raising the issue.