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Four Hundred Years of Humiliation

Poutine-toting Champlain offends French-language group
A French-language rights group is demanding an apology from…

by Andrew Potter on Thursday, July 3, 2008 11:12am - 0 Comments

Poutine-toting Champlain offends French-language group

A French-language rights group is demanding an apology from Prime Minister Stephen Harper for a controversial poster hanging at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

The poster — used to advertise the embassy’s Canada Day party — featured a picture of French explorer Samuel de Champlain holding a plate of poutine, Quebec’s famous delicacy made with fries, cheese curds and gravy.

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T. Thwim

Cheesy.
Scott M.

Wow, some people get offended waaay too easily.
Wayne

I second that Scott and add that generally there are some people with bad attitudes and way too much time on their hands.
Scott M.

Who knew we’d agree on things? :)
http://www.mediablowout.blogspot.com elly

erm…doesn’t mr. potter care about *why* french canadians are offended by the poster? that’s what matters here. there’s absolutely no value in only telling us about it, except to make the french look bad. one-sided reporting: booooooooooo!
Chris B

Is poutine really a “delicacy”? I love the stuff, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t think that something you buy off a non-moving schoolbus is really in the class of delicacy.
Scott M.

I think he may be giving his readership due credit for knowing why they would be offended. It’s obvious.

What I love is the comment “The US Embassy wouldn’t send out an invitation showing the Statue of Liberty holding a hot-dog”… They wouldn’t? Why not?

Really folks.
Pingback: My Canada Day includes poutine : Deux maudits anglais : Macleans.ca Blog Central
Andrew Potter

@Elly: How is simply giving you a link and excerpt an example of “one-sided reporting”? I didn’t endorse or criticise the story, I gave it to the blog readership to read and judge. You really think there’s “no value” in telling you about it?
Weird, because that’s exactly what the CBC did.
Scott M.

simply giving you a link and excerpt and a witty headline, of course…
Marilyn

Poutine is delicious and something french canadians should be proud of. If my province invented it, I’d be bragging.
Drew B.

I read this story and was little dumb founded. Chances are it was a French Canadian Embassy staffer who was assigned to make this invitation. Know doubt they were just missing home and probably can’t get a decent Poutine in the Washington area. Let’s face it Quebec does have the best cheese curds.
Dije

As does St. Albert’s in Eastern Ontario Drew. They keep Ottawa supplied and I am sure they are very proud of their product!
http://mikeanddean.blogspot.com Dean P

I wish we had poutine in Los Angeles. My yankee friends look at me like I’m crazy when I describe it. Though bloody caesars get a worse reaction . . .
Mike Young

If thats offensive what will be next of french canadian….banning the ‘princess and the frog” on the grounds it contains racial slurs?
Shenping

You have to keep in mind that the Impératif Français are people who like to talk about things like the Anglomania Epidemic. I’m not sure how typical they are.