McGill panel to tackle Bouchard-Taylor report

Political commentary, religious response on tap as experts gather for open forum

McGill University’s Faculty of Religious Studies will host a panel discussion on Tuesday, May, 27, at noon, to address the issues raised by the report of the Bouchard-Taylor Commission, formally known as the Consultation Commission on Accommodation Practices Related to Cultural Differences in Quebec Society

“This will be an opportunity to reflect and respond to what has turned out to be a fairly controversial report,” said Prof. Daniel Cere, one of the main organizers of the discussion, which will be held in the foyer of the Birks Building, 3520 University St., Montreal.

Commentary and analysis will be made by Prof. Roderick Macdonald of McGill’s Faculty of Law, a recipient of the Killam Prize – Canada’s most prestigious award for lifetime achievement in research – and a member of the advisory committee that counselled the report’s authors, Charles Taylor, a McGill philosophy professor, and sociologist Gérard Bouchard.

This will be followed by a panel discussion exploring religious responses to the report. Panelists are Manjit Singh, Director of McGill Chaplaincy Services and lecturer on Sikh religion; Imam Salam Elmenyawi, McGill’s Muslim Chaplain and Concordia lecturer on Islam; Barry Levy, professor in the Department of Jewish Studies; and Richard Bernier, director of McGill’s Catholic chaplaincy and lecturer in Catholic Studies.

The commentary and panel discussion, which are open to the public, will be followed by a question-and-answer period. Refreshments will be served.