Hi everyone, BigBong here
And today, we are back for a cultural video
I'm here with my Quebecer actress friend Sarah Godard
and we're gonna talk about a very crunchy subject
Women in Quebec!
What's really interesting in today's conversation is that
I've been living in Quebec for 6 years now
You have been in France
Yes, so we both have some experience in these two territories
First of all, could you tell us where you're from in Quebec?
I come from Saint-Calixte-de-Kilkenny
It's a small village in Lanaudiere
which is not too far from Montreal, about an hour away
But enough to have the clash between the city and the countryside
I see
Would you say that they have a thick accent?
That would be complicated to understand for French people?
Yes probably, actually it's not the region in Quebec
that has the thickest accent
If I compare to Saguenay for example, or Magdalen Islands
But there is something happening in Montreal
Simply because there is a normalisation of French
I think it's because we're so used to
interacting with immigrants etc.
So I think that the level of language is changing in Montreal
Before we continue, I think it's important
to provide a disclaimer
Obviously, today's subject generates a lot of different opinions
And of course, Quebec just like France
are very multicultural territories
So there are even more opinions
So I clarify just in case, that we are here on YouTube
So of course, these are personal views
that we don't confuse with facts
However, I believe there are still tendances
in both countries that are different enough
to talk about them today
You'll tell me if you agree with me, or not
And the relevance of this video is simply to make people think
And of course, you're more than welcome
if you want to share your own personal experience
The comment section is here for that
Alright, so I read a book called
"Code Quebec" which is very interesting
for Francophones who want to immigrate to Quebec
or for people who are just curious to learn more about the province
There is also a program with the same name on Tele-Quebec
Though I don't think it's available outside of the province
and it's also the reason why we're making this video today
But there is a word in particular, very popular in Quebec
It's the word "Germaine"
So of course, it's a name "Germaine"
But it's also a pun with the verbs "gérer" and "mener"
So the woman who manages and leads
It's just the description of a character
But it can have a positive or a negative connotation
depending on the people...
How do you personally feel when you hear that word?
Has someone ever said it to you?
Yes, I've heard it
But I didn't know it came from "gère" and "mène"
What did you think it meant?
It's very stupid but I thought
well first of all, Germaine is also a name
Yes, it's the feminine or Germain
And I thought it had a German origin
But then, I was like why would it be related to Germans?
But yeah, I didn't know
Right, so yeah from "gérer" and "mener"
I'm also learning
But did yo know the connotation of that word?
Yes, I knew the expression mais not the origin
And yeah typically, it's often the house woman
who imposes the mindset
It's also the stereotype, you know, the man who works
and the woman who stays home
But she is the one deciding how everything is working
You know, the manager of the house
So I think it comes from there in our culture
So it's not necessarily associated with this character
But it's someone who wants to lead the couple
Because we usually use it in a couple
According to you, is it more negative or positive?
Negative!
Negative because it's still a stereotype
Alright
Because there is the image of the strong woman in Quebec
The woman who leads
You know, men are a little more relaxed
But women are really the ones, we'll talk about it later
They are the ones who would flirt
They really take the initiative
We also see more and more women graduating from universities
So it's not surprising to see women
taking positions that were historically and traditionally
positions for men, on a professional level
Let's dive into the subject everybody wants to know
Seduction... Yes
So here, we'll only talk about heterosexual relationships
because otherwise it's a completely different debate
There is this image, in France at least
that Quebec is a bit of an Eldorado
I mean there is nature all around
There are job opportunities, the security level
is relatively high in general
But that's not all
I have a lot of French friends who ask me
Hey Bong, is it true that in Quebec
women are the ones who make the first move?
Who come to use, and buy you a beer etc.
I personally didn't have any expectations
I didn't know the stereotype about the Quebecois woman
I came here and that's when I discovered it
It happened a few times that women who were interested
would just come to me and offer a beer
I was surprised because it's something that happens
very rarely, it never happened to me in France
Have you ever done it?
Knowing that in reality, that I would like to clarify
it's not always the woman who makes the first move
It's rather egalitarian on that level
I find it funny because I clearly did it
However, I don't come up with a beer
It's the traditional shot
What's the traditional shot?
Shots are also typically Quebecois
So that's it, I'd more like approaching a guy
and ask "are you down to take a shot with me?"
You know, there is something more inviting
Offer a drink, I don't do it that much
But yeah indeed, it's our feminism
overflowing a bit, and we're like: no no, wait
I'll show you that I can also go to you
We were talking about the Germaine
But here, it's like the evolution
Not the Germaine, but showing that I can
take the initiative, that I also have some guts
Now, there are also women around me
who decided to come to Quebec
because they were sick and tired about the endless
harassing atmosphere in the streets
And that their life completely changed when they arrived here
Did you also experience that in France?
Or did you have similar experiences here?
But we actually hear that less around here
from people coming here, street harassment
There is catcalling
Unfortunately, we're still living in this world
So it happens in Montreal
But more aggressively, it's pretty unusual
And when it happens to me, it's during the night
Obviously, there is always a risk when you walk by yourself
as a woman
I was lucky when I went to France
Because it didn't happen to me
Maybe it helped that I was constantly with my friend
who is a man, you know
Maybe it creates a little barrier on that level
But I incidentally heard a lot of testimonies
from French women who immigrated to Quebec
or people I met there
who told me that taking the metro, when you're woman
it doesn't matter if it's the day or the night, it's as dangerous
Of course, it's sad that we live in such a society
I think we can still raise awareness with videos like this one
to make people reflect
But with all that, there is the opposite happening
As men, we're not sure how to behave anymore
In a flirting context, once again
There has always been the fear of rejection
So on top of that, you add the fear of...
Is going to be misinterpreted?
Is it going to be reprehensible?
What advice would you give to a man asking these questions?
First of all... I can't believe you're really asking this
My answer, I don't know if you'll accept it
But I think is to step back
First of all, because I see too many people asking this question
Too many men asking themselves, I'm afraid to be accused
before understanding what's going on
Personally, I had the chance to have good relationships
The people I was seeing...
It was going well
But I don't know how to say, nothing was forced
You know, it was just natural
If you're not an ill-intentioned person
your deeds wouldn't be bad
or you have the sensitivity to listen, to react
and if you cross a limit, not on purpose
to react, to understand, to listen and to apologize
It's mostly that in the end
Because we can't all be scared
to be accused, all of a sudden
Because yes, I have many friends who like
a man who makes the first move
But a man who wouldn't be surprised
if I pay the bill at the end of the meal
Interesting!
That's it, the balance between the two
Yeah this is very Quebecois
Here, you shouldn't be surprised as a man
if you're trying to invite someone
and the person categorically refuses
And you see, the sweet spot is when
the other person ask to pay the bill
but I refuse, you understand?
If he doesn't offer
I would be like: is he cheap?
Or is he interested? That's the question...
Thank you for accepting my invitation
That was super interesting!
Of course, you're free to share your own opinion
There are no good or bad answers
We are here to share about cultural differences
Thank you all
And we'll see each other soon for more videos
Bye!