In 1912, the Ontario government introduced Regulation 17, a directive limiting the use of French as a language of instruction to the first two years of elementary school. This decree triggered a political crisis. The Franco-Ontarian population mobilized, believing that the government must back down. However, collective action proved insufficient. 

Franco-Ontarian leaders took the case of French as a language of instruction in the school system to the courts. However, the courts ruled that the Ontario government had the right to restrict the use of French as a language of instruction. Faced with these setbacks, and with acute linguistic tensions arising from the conscription crisis of 1917, Franco-Ontarian leaders reassessed their strategies. They modified their tactics by becoming part of the “bonne entente movement,” which has been created by a group of Ontario and Quebec politicians and businessmen, both English-speaking and French-speaking, who were concerned with national unity.

The present document is a letter sent to the executive of the Fédération des femmes canadiennes-françaises proposing membership in this movement. To resolve the school dispute, the time had come for diplomacy, “as women know how to do,” declares the document. The club’s constitution called for “every effort to be made to create harmony and affection among the various elements” of the population. The objectives were to promote learning of the country’s two official languages and to encourage the provincial government to abolish Regulation 17.

The document highlights the political role played by Franco-Ontarian women in the school conflict. For example, in January 1916, some of them used their hatpins to prevent police officers from entering Ottawa’s Guigues School, where teachers were giving classes in French. They remained on duty until the end of the school year. A few years later, when the “good understanding” strategy took hold, women again were involved. This strategy proved successful, but required patience on the part of its supporters. It was not until 1927 that the Ontario government abandoned enforcement of Regulation 17, which was finally formally abolished in 1944. (See “Bilingualism as a Solution to the Crisis Caused by Regulation 17”)