Reply #77: and Yukon and the other territories ...

[iverglas]

and maybe many people haven't heard of the Fransaskois. ;)

I work peripherally in this field (official languages, language rights) and it's an extremely complex one.

For instance, minority language rights in the courts (criminal law is under federal jurisdiction, procedure in the courts and things like highway traffic law are under provincial jurisdiction ...) are uneven and a subject of much discussion and litigation.

Not all federal offices are required to provide services in French everywhere, and many do not. The "where numbers warrant" criterion is another contentious issue.

There are complex and intertwined issues of individual and collective rights -- the latter involving things like control of the community's institutions (minority language schools and hospitals ...), and the right of minority language communities to develop and "flourish" and the nature of the government's commitment (political only? enforceable?) to supporting the exercise of that right.

It's all yet another aspect of Canada as a process. ;)