Canadian parliament consideration of Acadian national holiday Group: alt.culture.cajun Date: Tue, Dec 4, 2001, 2:33pm (CST+6) From: bcomeaux@earthlink.net (Brian Gabriel Comeaux) Liberals look to appease Acadians http://www.telegraphjournal.com New Brunswick TELEGRAPH-JOURNAL RICHARD ROIK         Telegraph-Journal OTTAWA - New Brunswick's newest senator will use his maiden speech to promote Aug. 15 as a national day of recognition for Acadians. The move comes as Ottawa tries to ease the sting of defeating demands the British Crown apologize for the Acadian deportation. Joe Day, a Hampton lawyer, confirmed Monday he's been enlisted by party "leadership" to bolster the Senate motion aimed at putting a more forward-looking spin on the Acadian contribution to Canada. "It's not a question of how strongly do I feel that Aug. 15 be recognized," Mr. Day admitted. "I think it's 'do I understand the Acadian population and the contributions they've made,' and I certainly do. "It's a subject that pertains to New Brunswick. It's one that's on the order paper right now, and the leadership has suggested that they want some speakers on that to understand what it's about. I understand what it's about." Mr. Day's looming involvement in the debate has not been finalized yet, but it comes just one week after Liberals defeated a Bloc Québécois MP's bill seeking a British Crown apology for the 1755-63 expulsion of more than 10,000 Acadians in the Maritimes. New Brunswick Liberal Senator Rose-Marie Losier-Cool, who describes herself as an "Acadian watchdog," is behind the Senate motion that surfaced in the summer - just as tensions over the Acadian apology were heating up along partisan lines. Federal Labour Minister Claudette Bradshaw, who represents the Moncton-area riding, confirmed the federal government is strongly behind recognizing Aug. 15 as fête nationale des acadiens et acadiennes.eating up along partisan lines. "We're taking that really seriously," Ms. Bradshaw said Monday. "It's something we've been discussing and, yeah, we want to do it." But she downplayed the recent political overtones to the Senate motion. "The Acadians have been asking us for that for many, many years," she said. "They want it to be on the calendar." Viola Leger, another rookie New Brunswick Liberal senator, used her own maiden speech last month to express support for the Senate motion by outlining Acadians' artistic and cultural contributions. Ms. Leger, a 71-year-old Acadian actress, is best known for playing the lead role in Antonine Maillet's La Sagouine. Mr. Day said he believes the Senate motion is a win-win proposition. "I think that it hurts no one and recognizes the contribution of particular peoples within Canada," he said. Reach our reporter tjotta@nb.aibn.com I SAY A BIG AMEN ME!!!!:) ALICE