Quebec's language watchdog has decided that using "go" to cheer for sports teams is now "partially legitimized." The ruling follows recent controversy during the Montreal Canadiens' NHL playoff run, when it emerged that Montreal's transit agency had been pressured to replace the slogan "Go! Canadiens Go!" on digital banners on buses, the Guardian reports. The Office Québécois de la Langue Française—OQLF—had instructed the agency to remove "go" to comply with the province's laws protecting the French language, and the signs were switched to "Allez! Canadiens Allez!"
The Canadiens—nicknamed the Habs, short for Les Habitants, a reference to early French settlers—are a celebrated part of Quebec's sports history. The province's French-language minister, Jean-François Roberge, later intervened, calling "Go Habs Go" a part of Quebec culture and vowing to dismiss future complaints about the phrase. In an April statement, Dominique Malack, head of the language watchdog, acknowledged that the slogan is part of Quebec's history but said "go" is an Anglicism and public bodies are obligated to use "exemplary" French, the Canadian Press reports. The new guidelines allow "go," but the OQLF says it still prefers "allez."
Quebec's language protections have drawn attention before, the Guardian reports. In 2022, a bar owner was warned for not making a Facebook page bilingual enough, and in 2019, a short-lived proposal to ban "Bonjour-hi" sparked backlash. The most famous case, 2013's "pastagate," saw a restaurant owner criticized for using Italian words on a menu, which ended with the OQLF head's resignation.
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