The Quiet Revolution

This section on the Quiet Revolution will examine questions like
"Why is the Quiet Revolution a turning point?" and "How does government use its power?"

Students will be able to 

Describe the changes in religious practice in Quebec.

Explain the new social and economic measures.

Name new government departments and state-owned corporations.

Explain why the Quiet Revolution is a turning point

The Quiet Revolution in Québec began in 1960 with the election of the Quebec Liberal Party and lasted until the end of the 1970s. After more than 15 years of conservatism under Maurice Duplessis (1944-1959), the new Premier, Jean Lesage, and his team began a series of reforms in the 1960s aimed at modernizing the Quebec government and society.

SECULARIZATION: One of the priorities of Jean Lesage’s government was to secularize the Quebec state, that is, to officially separate the power of the Church from that of the provincial government. Until then, the Catholic Church was very close to the government and controlled health and education systems in the province. [...]

ECONOMIC POWER:  In 1960, the majority of Quebecers were low-skilled workers and relatively poor. The incomes of French people were among the lowest in Canada. In the 1960s, most large companies were controlled by English Canadians.  To improve living conditions in Quebec, the provincial government decided to give more economic power to French speakers. Firstly, it decided to improve access to education in the province. [It also created institutions [...]  to develop the Quebec economy.

NATIONALISM AND Expansion of the Welfare State: In 1962, the Quebec government nationalized electricity production by combining all of Quebec’s private electricity companies into Hydro-Québec. Hydro-Québec quickly became the largest company in Quebec.  During the Quiet Revolution, several projects were launched to support a new type of Quebec nationalism that was associated with liberal values. [...] Eventually, this nationalism gave rise to the Quebec sovereignty movement, which believed that Quebec should separate from Canada to form an independent country.

ECONOMIC MODERNISM: At the turn of the 1960s, the arrival in power of a new generation of Keynesian politicians accelerated the modernization of Quebec. The Liberal, Union Nationale and Parti Québécois governments took turns adopting progressive economic and social measures to ensure a decent standard of living for the Quebec population.

Educational (and other) Reforms: Relying on newly-formed ministries and Crown corporations, the Quebec government planned its economic intervention and intensified its takeover of the social sphere, whether in education, health or social services. Until the end of the 1970s, the emergence of the welfare state thus characterized this profound transformation of the Quebec state, one of the main manifestations of Quebec's political modernization.

Source:  RECITUS via https://societies.learnquebec.ca/1960-the-quiet-revolution/  and https://histoire.recitus.qc.ca/periode/explorer/1945-1980/chapitre/revolution-tranquille 

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