Viateur Éthier (June 27, 1915 – July 19, 1976) was a businessman and political figure in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada. He represented Glengarry—Prescott in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

as a Liberal member from 1962 to 1972. He was born in

Sainte-Justine-de-Newton, Quebec Sainte-Justine-de-Newton () is a municipality located in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada. The population as of the 2021 Canadian census was 947. The municipality is situated on Route 325 south of Très-Saint-Rédempteur, just east of ...

, in 1915, the son of Albert Éthier, and studied there and at

Dalkeith, Ontario North Glengarry is a township in eastern Ontario, Canada, in the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry. It is a predominantly rural area located between Ottawa-Gatineau, Montreal and Cornwall. Communities The township of North Glenga ...

. He married Marcelle Touchette in 1948. Éthier owned a bakery in Dalkeith. Éthier retired from politics in 1972. His brother

Denis Denis may refer to: People * Saint Denis of Paris, 3rd-century Christian martyr and first bishop of Paris * Denis the Areopagite, Biblical figure * Denis, Bishop of Győr (13th century), Hungarian prelate * Denis, son of Ampud (died 1236), bar ...

was elected to the House of Commons for the same seat in 1972 and represented the riding until 1984.

Altercation with a CBC cameraman

On July 9, 1969, Éthier hit a

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

cameraman in the jaw, after he had questioned the bilingual nature of Canada. As Éthier was leaving the House of Commons, he asked a question in French to cameraman Jim Primerous. Primerous responded that he didn't speak French. Éthier was annoyed by this response, and proceeded to lecture the cameraman about the importance of being bilingual when working for a

crown corporation Crown corporation () is the term used in Canada for organizations that are structured like private companies, but are directly and wholly owned by the government. Crown corporations have a long-standing presence in the country, and have a sign ...

. At this, Primerous replied "but is it a bilingual country?" Éthier thought this response was insolent, especially two days after the adoption of the Official Languages Act, and he was not able to hold back his fist.

References

External links

*
''Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, 1945-1978'', O & F Marin (1982)
1915 births 1976 deaths Liberal Party of Canada MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Franco-Ontarian people 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada {{Liberal-Ontario-MP-stub