The format of a My Take is 150 words – no more, no less – to express an opinion on a different topic each week. This week’s topic was the Bill 96 protest.
Embarrassment and surprise are the words to describe my feelings on only recently having a complete comprehension of how impactful Bill 96 will be.
That’s not to say I don’t keep up with news. As a reporter, I am obligated to. But Bill 96 didn’t start creeping into my red-zone, this-is-actually-terrifying radar until a month ago.
Maybe it’s just me, but the conversation about Bill 96 wasn’t popular on social media, nor were my anglophone friends talking about it, despite being students in CEGEP. As a young person myself, I noticed the younger generation only realizes how urgent situations are when the topic is trending on Twitter or Instagram.
Predicting the size of the protest on Saturday is difficult. I feel people just aren’t aware of what is happening. All I can hope is that Quebecers, whatever their linguistic background, show up in the masses.