Montreal seeks Quebec's support with language laws after English book club rejected

The City of Montreal says it needs more guidance from the Quebec government in applying the province's language laws after a local library refused to offer space for an English-language book club.

Christopher DiRaddo, the author behind the Violet Hour book club, said in a Facebook post the city apologized and told him Friday that he can hold his club meetings at the library after all.

The Père-Ambroise library had told DiRaddo that he could only host events in French, and city officials had said his English-language book discussions would only be permitted if he offered simultaneous French-language translation — a requirement he said was unrealistic.

After DiRaddo went public with the situation, the Quebec government said the province's language laws did not apply in this case because the book club is not offering public services on behalf of a municipal organization.

DiRaddo says he welcomes the clarification and may consider hosting his club gatherings at the library, but he says he fears the vague nature of the province's 2022 language reform may lead to future cancellations of English cultural events.

WATCH | DiRaddo explains email he received from library: 

Montreal author told he couldn’t hold book club meeting in English at public library

6 days ago

Duration 2:17

After requesting space from the Père-Ambroise library in the Ville Marie borough for his English book club, Chris DiRaddo received an email citing Quebec’s new French language charter, Law 14, also known as Bill 96, as part of the reason why he couldn’t use it.

For its part, the City of Montreal says it will educate its staff on how to properly interpret the language reform, which makes sweeping restrictions on the use of English in the civil service and other institutions.

In a statement, the city also announced that it has created a committee including the boroughs to prevent similar situations from occurring in the future.