Franco-Ontarian Flag Celebrates 50 Years of Cultural Pride
Today, September 25th marks the 50th anniversary of the Franco-Ontarian flag. This flag, officially unveiled in 1975, was adopted as the official emblem of the Franco-Ontarian community by the Ontario Legislative Assembly in 2001. The colors of the flag represent the province’s climate – green for summer, white for winter. The lis is a symbol of global Francophonie and the trille, the floral emblem of Ontario.
In honor of this historic day, the Charles-Émile-Claude Center organized an evening of celebration with live music, local hors d’oeuvres and wine, and personalized donuts. Many participants were proudly dressed in the flag colours and the atmosphere was festive.
To kick off the event, Anita Landriault, President of CCEC, delivered a welcome speech. At the sound of applause, Céline Baillargeon-Tardif, Director General of the ACFO – SDG, proclaimed: “Today, as we raise our flag high, we strongly affirm that we are proud of our identity, proud of our roots, and confident in the future of our community.” ”
After describing the history of the flag, Cassandra McElhone, Coordinator de la Francophonie Locale (ACFO-SDG), said: “The Franco-Ontario flag is not just a piece of cloth; it is a promise, the promise that the French language will continue to live on large wings and reign in Ontario for the future.” generations to come. “Following his speech, everyone was invited to sing the Franco-Ontario flag anthem, “”My Beautiful Flag,”” written by Brian St-Pierre.” We sang, waved our flags, accompanied by video on the big screen.
The talks have ended with Flora Cynthia Kra, President of the AFRO-Diversity Festival, and Philippe Dieudonne, President of Bwabochet Actions. They talked about the flag that connects everyone by the language around the world with “multicolored accents” and “green and white magic.” ”
