How Trump’s Canada threats dampened Quebec separatist movement – for now

For weeks, the separatist party in Canada’s francophone province had been campaigning hard to steal an electoral district in Montreal long held by the Liberals. And to party faithful, the Bloc’s win reflected an excitement that the separatist movement was once again in ascendance. Those dynamics helped spark the Quiet Revolution – the bloodless overthrow of Catholicism and the anglophone ruling classes in the province – and the beginnings of the Quebec separatist movement. But Trump’s aggression has temporarily dampened separatism and invigorated Quebecers in a defence of Canada. Analysts say the waning sentiment among sovereigntists is simple calculation: an independent Quebec can only exist with an independent Canada.