Why subscribe?
To support an independent and unique media by a French-speaking Quebecer. To read things you won’t find anywhere else. For well-reasoned counterpoints. For charts that speak volumes. To be surprised and challenged. And sometimes, for a smile.
As a freelancer, I rely on your support to sustain my efforts, which also grants you full access to all current and archived posts on this blog.
Why Quebecsplaining
Quebec is said to be a distinct society. It is more than that. Quebec is a North American anomaly, a Francophone improbability in an Anglo-Saxon ocean, a somewhat tightly woven society in an increasingly diversified America.
Quebec is one of the most progressive places on the continent and the site of several firsts: the first universal drug insurance plan; the first subsidized childcare services; the first parental leave plan. Women in Quebec have a higher rate of participation in the labour market than anywhere else in North America.
In addition to being the first place on the continent to recognize same-sex unions, Quebec was also one of the first places to implement carbon pricing and legalize assisted dying. It was the first province to adopt a Charter of Rights, well before the Canadian Charter.
Quebec is not without its contradictions. Its progressive stance often coexists with a nationalism that sometimes takes on identity-based and conservative overtones: Quebec is the only place in North America to have enacted laws restricting religious freedom, not once, but twice, and contrary to its own Charter of Rights. The nationalism of the 1970s and 1980s, which sought to be inclusive, is now more inward-looking, sometimes directed against other Quebecers.
Quebec is a place of innovation and immense entrepreneurial and cultural successes, which radiate well beyond its borders, such as Desjardins, Bombardier, Hydro-Québec, Cirque du Soleil, Couche-Tard, Céline Dion and Denis Villeneuve, to name a few. But Quebec sometimes lags. It is the national champion in high school mathematics, but it also ranks first for dropout rates. It holds the dubious distinction of being the most lenient province when it comes to drunk driving.
It was in Quebec that Canada began. The term “Canadiens” originally referred to the descendants of French settlers, hence the name of Montreal’s legendary hockey team.
It is also through Quebec that Canada could break apart. In this province, which has given Canada most of its prime ministers for the past 50 years, the dream of independence remains a powerful political force.
The debates that shape Quebec and sometimes propel it forward cross its borders, for better or for worse.
Be warned: what happens in Quebec rarely stays in Quebec.
Who I am
My name is Patrick Déry.
I am an editor and public policy analyst. I write (in French) for myself and sometimes for others. I am also a numbers geek who likes to make data speak. I enjoy checking whether the facts and the data match politicians’ claims and media headlines. The discrepancy is often surprising, sometimes amusing. I also like charts and I promise you will see some interesting ones in this space.
I have published numerous articles on public policy and given over a hundred interviews in recent years.
I studied law, ran my own business for nine years, studied journalism, and worked for several media outlets, including Le Journal de Montréal and La Presse, where I managed the op-ed section for a time.
I have worked with think tanks representing right, centre, and left-leaning perspectives. I have also acted as a consultant for a political party that I have never voted for. To sum it up: I am less interested in partisanship and ideology than in good ideas and best practices, supported by facts and data. When I am wrong, I find it easier to change my mind than twist reality. (It’s simpler and I sleep better.)
I have been somewhat active on social media in recent years. The interest my posts have generated has shown me that there exists both a space and an appetite for a different take on our public debates.
That is what I want to pursue here, with your support.
Quebecsplaining is a bit of an outlier: a media written mostly for Anglophones outside Quebec by a Francophone living in Quebec. The main objective is to explain what happens here from a local perspective in a language that is more accessible to Canadians living outside Quebec. Maybe, along the way, it can help bridge the gap between this country’s two solitudes.
Last, please do not mind occasional typos, mistakes and sometimes clunky sentences, as English is my second language. Constructive feedback is always welcome. :-)
Best,
Patrick
January 26, 2026.
