ABSTRACT
The debate around academic freedom in Quebec has taken on a growing importance in recent years, culminating in the passing of Bill 32—An Act Respecting Academic Freedom in the University Sector—in June 2022. This bill was drafted in response to what many in the governmental and public spheres saw as the dangers of student-led pressures on academic spaces. While discussions about academic freedom were already happening, the public discussion took a new turn in October 2020, after a professor at the University of Ottawa, Ms. Lieutenant-Duval, used a racial slur when quoting a text in the context of a course on gender representation in the visual arts. 1 Complaints from students led to her suspension, 2 which sparked a debate in the academic community and beyond on the place to be given to students’ demands in the name of social justice. The event was divisive and led to a group of 579 professors across Canada writing a letter of support. 3 English-speaking media initially focused on the racism present in the event, while French-speaking media had a heavier focus on the threats to academic freedom that it represented. This event and other similar ones, including at McGill University, led to the establishment of the Commission sur la liberté académique in March 2021, presided by Justice Michel Bastarache, and ultimately to the Quebec government’s decision to approve Bill 32. 4
