Livres Québec, a group of professional associations in the book industry in Quebec, wants to make reading an election issue. For World Book and Copyright Day, he asks political parties to commit to making it a national priority for at least a year.
In an open letter also signed by organizations in the education, business and health sectors, he called for the establishment of a special, multidisciplinary and interdepartmental committee with a monetary value. significant to implement an action plan that puts reading at the heart of Quebec society.
We are coming out in two extraordinary years that will leave traces in society and we have not yet measured everything and all the consequences. We talk a lot about dropping out of school, misinformation, mental health, screen addiction, underemploymentwritten by the signatories.
Reading, if it doesn’t solve everything, seems to us to be an element that all Quebecers should appreciate, because its contribution is more than useful: it is necessary and essential for a prosperous society.can we read
Create a culture of reading
We believe it is time to create a culture of readingsummarizes Laurent Dubois, director general of the Union of Quebec Writers.
Often, he said, people enjoy reading as children. But in adolescence, many lose their appetite for reading and never return to old age, according to him.
There’s a stall in the pleasure of reading, and this is the figure that worries usexplained Laurent Dubois.
” Considering that it should be part of the hygiene rules to read, in the same way that we brush our teeth, that we eat fruits and vegetables and that we walk 8000 steps per day. “
Reading for civic education
Katherine Fafard, executive director of the Association des libraires du Québec agrees.
He believes that the benefits of reading can be felt in all aspects of civic life, particularly in the areas of education, work ability, mental health, critical thinking and empathy.
The pandemic also stressed the importance of reading to assimilate complex social issues, according to the director general.
If we cannot read and interpret what we are told, how are we able to make good decisions as citizens?he asked.
By making reading a national priority, he hopes to deliver reading to people, wherever they are: in social services, in youth centers, in companieshe lists.
People may not go to bookstores or their public library, but we will succeed in reaching them by reading through many means of mediation.he concludes.
This text was written frominterviews conducted by Catherine Richercultural columnist on the show At 15-18. Comments can be edited for clarity and brevity.
Source: Radio-Canada