In Brief

It is no slouch internationally, either. The province has the dubious distinction of claiming the highest smoking rate among adult women (38%) for any jurisdiction in the world. Historically, cultural differences have been blamed for the province's high smoking rates but antitobacco advocates now say that the lack of concerted francophone antismoking campaigns may be the real culprit.

The province was recently dubbed "Canada's weak link for tobacco control" by Maurice Gingues, project coordinator at the Canadian Cancer Society. However, antitobacco advocates are now increasing their French-language efforts to convince francophones to give up the habit.

Gingues has led a charge for francophone-specific initiatives. He tells anglophone colleagues they should not overlook francophones when preparing antismoking drives. "When campaigns or events are planned to raise awareness I always ask, 'What are you doing in French?" Gingues said during a workshop on francophones and tobacco control that was part of November's Second National Conference on Tobacco or Health. "This is not to be politically correct, but to keep the movement going and make it stronger."

Gingues said he rarely finds promotional and educational materials prepared specifically for a francophone audience, but the situation is improving rapidly.

"The movement is largely anglophone, but there really is an openness on the part of our English colleagues to reach francophones," he said. "This doesn't mean telling them what to do, but helping them to develop the tools they need to get the job done themselves."

Some observers note that the 1994 drive to reduce Canadian tobacco taxes because of the surge in tobacco smuggling received strong support in Quebec. "Health advocates in Quebec suffered a crushing defeat with the rollback of those taxes," said Louis Gauvin, head of the Coalition québecoise pour le contrôle du tabac. "We didn't do enough to address the smuggling issue but now we are seeking out allies in the battle to get taxes raised."

The coalition is a loose alliance of organizations united in trying to reduce tobacco use in Quebec and among francophones throughout Canada. Launched last summer, it now comprises 250 organizations, community groups and municipalities.

The coalition is trying to create a network of communities to exchange information and spread the antitobacco message in French. Besides its work within Quebec, the coalition held workshops in New Brunswick and Manitoba -- both provinces with significant francophone populations -- in an attempt to gather support and spread the francophone antitobacco message nationally.

Ontario, which is also trying to develop tobacco-control resources in French, recently prepared a guide aimed specifically at the province's francophones. André Nadeau, who helped prepare the guide for the Ottawa communications firm of Beaulieu, Nadeau and Associates, said antitobacco advocates usually fall into the trap of simply translating material and expecting it to influence francophones. "To communicate with francophones you have to tailor the message," he stressed. "Just because a communication method works in English doesn't mean it will in French."

Gingues applauded Ontario's efforts and said evidence proves that francophones respond positively when offered information in their mother tongue.

"Francophones outside of Quebec are proud of their bilingualism and don't necessarily demand French materials," said Gingues. "However, when we produce the materials, we find the demand is there."