Quebec’s move towards political sovereignty represented a challenge for the francophone minority institutional network. After the election of the Parti Québécois in Quebec in 1976, the Fédération des francophones hors Québec (FFHQ) endeavoured to exploit the threat of Quebec’s political sovereignty, determined to press the Canadian government to take linguistic and national duality into account in future constitutional negotiations (see « Pour ne plus être sans pays »).  

In the spring of 1980, FFHQ members worked to reach a common position. While the Association canadienne-française de Saskatchewan was clearly in the YES camp, others, such as the Association canadienne-française de l’Ontario, leaned towards neutrality. At the end of a “laborious” exercise, the FFHQ chose not to support the NO side, while noting an “evolution towards the YES side” (Le Devoir, March 31, 1980).

The main purpose of this public statement was to avoid damaging the forces of sovereignty. Federation leaders hoped that the YES side would garner enough votes to force constitutional negotiations. In the meantime, the FFHQ intended to raise the stakes with provincial governments, wanting them to respond to the positions it had formulated over the past few years (see “The Heirs of Lord Durham”).

Although the Fédération des Acadiens de la Nouvelle-Écosse (FANE) accepted the principle of self-determination for Quebeckers, the organization “did not want to see Quebec separate,” since this would “entail serious consequences” for the Acadian community (Le Droit, May 9, 1980). This fear of losing certain linguistic and educational gains was a concern echoed in other statements articulated in French-speaking Canada.

On May 20, 1980, a majority of Quebecers rejected the political sovereignty option. Nonetheless, the referendum opened the door to new negotiations over the patriation of the Constitution and the inclusion of a Charter of Rights. In this context, French-speaking minority groups would have to redouble their efforts to avoid being marginalized in a new tug-of-war between the federal government and the provinces.