Quebec minister calls for people to ‘wake up’ to radical Islamism

Minister Jean-François Roberge responds to the opposition during question period at the Quebec National Assembly on Tuesday, April 8, 2025. (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press)

Following François Legault’s speech denouncing the “onslaught of radical Islamism,” the Minister of Secularism, Jean-François Roberge, called on Wednesday for people to wake up to this threat.

Asked to give examples of radical Islamism in Quebec, Roberge cited the case of Bedford School in Montreal, where a report showed that teachers had infiltrated the institution.

“We must not wait until it is everywhere, in all our institutions, to wake up. Let’s wake up now!” Roberge said at a press conference.

Legault himself was asked to explain his comments from the previous day as he made his way to question period.

“There is one (case) that is obvious,” at Bedford School, “Islamists who forbid girls from taking physical education classes, which is no small thing in Quebec,” Legault replied, before continuing on his way.

The opposition, for its part, asked the government to clarify its position.

Liberal Party House Leader Marwah Rizqy asked the premier to define what he means when he refers to an “assault.”

She pointed out that the recent report on strengthening secularism commissioned by the government made no mention of radical Islamism.

Québec solidaire (QS) MNA Guillaume Cliche-Rivard said that the premier should also denounce other forms of radicalism, particularly masculinism.

Finally, the Parti Québécois believes that radical Islamism exists. But PQ MNA Joël Arseneau suggested that the term “assault” was poorly chosen to advance the debate.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Oct. 1, 2025.

By Patrice Bergeron, The Canadian Press