Victor Goldbloom

Victor Goldbloom
Commissionner of Official Language
In office
1991–1999
Preceded by D'Iberville Fortier
Succeeded by Dyane Adam
Member of the National Assembly of Quebec for D'Arcy-McGee
In office
1966–1979
Succeeded by Herbert Marx
Minister of Municipal Affairs
and the Environment
In office
1973–1976
Personal details
Born Victor Charles Goldbloom
(1923-07-31)July 31, 1923
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Died February 15, 2016(2016-02-15) (aged 92)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Nationality Canadian
Political party Liberal
Spouse(s) Sheila Barshay-Rothstein

Victor Charles Goldbloom, CC OQ (July 31, 1923 – February 15, 2016) was a Canadian pediatrician, lecturer, and politician.

Early life and Education

He was born in Montreal, the son of Alton Goldbloom and Annie Ballon. He studied at Selwyn House and Lower Canada College. He studied at McGill University receiving his BSc in 1944, his MD in 1945, his DipEd in 1950 and his DLitt in 1992. Dr. Goldbloom was assistant resident at the Babies' Hospital of the Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center, in New York.[1]

Career

He was elected in 1966 as the MNA for the Montreal riding of D'Arcy-McGee. He was re-elected in 1970, 1973, and 1976. While Robert Bourassa was Premier of Quebec, Goldbloom was Minister of State responsible for Quality of Environment (1970–73). In 1973, he was appointed Minister of Municipal Affairs as well as Quebec's first Minister of the Environment, serving in both positions until the Liberal government's defeat in 1976.[2] Goldbloom was in charge of the Olympic Installations Board for the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal .[1][3]

He was the first member of the Jewish community to become a cabinet minister in the Quebec government. He kept his seat in the 1976 provincial election that defeated the Liberal government and sat on the Opposition benches until he resigned his seat on October 16, 1979 after Claude Ryan became Liberal leader.

Subsequently, from 1980 to 1987, he was CEO of the Canadian Council of Christians and Jews.

From 1991 until 1999, he was Canada's fourth Commissioner of Official Languages. During his tenure, Commissioner Goldbloom conducted two comprehensive studies. The first study examined the availability of services in both official languages in offices designated bilingual, which concluded that the federal government's bilingualism was not yet fully implemented nor functional. The second study focused on the implementation of Part VII of the Official Languages Act by the federal government and suggested different ways that Section 41 of the Official Languages Act could be implemented. In this report, Goldbloom suggested assigning a role of Coordinator of Language Policy at the Privy Council Office.[4]

In 2009, he expressed concerns on the state of Catholic-Jewish relations after the lifting of the excommunications of the bishops of the Society of Saint Pius X.[5] Goldbloom died of a heart attack at Montreal in February 2016.[6][7]

Family

In June, 1948, he married Sheila (born Barshay-Rothstein) of Peekskill, New York. His sons are Michael Goldbloom, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Bishop's University and former publisher of the Toronto Star and the Montreal Gazette,[8] and Jonathan Goldbloom, founder and president of Jonathan Goldbloom & Associates. His daughter, Susan Restler, lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Honours

Sheila and Victor Goldbloom Distinguished Community Service Award

In June 2009, the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) established the Sheila and Victor Goldbloom Distinguished Community Service Award in their honor.

In September 2009, the first awards were presented to lawyer and longtime promoter of quality and English rights Casper Bloom, Eastern Townships-based health-care advocate Marjorie Goodfellow, and researcher Jack Jedwab, who has contributed to the knowledge and understanding of English-speaking Quebec.

Electoral record

Quebec general election, 1966: D'Arcy-McGee
Party Candidate Votes%
LiberalVictor Goldbloom24,70990.57
Union NationaleBoris Garmaise1,5485.67
     RIN Louise Belzile 895 3.28
     Ralliement national Gilles Côté 129 0.47
Total valid votes 27,281 100.00
Rejected, unmarked and declined ballots 699
Turnout 27,980 60.88
Electors on the lists 45,962
Source: Official Results, Le Directeur général des élections du Québec.
Quebec general election, 1970: D'Arcy-McGee
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalVictor Charles Goldbloom36,54390.41-0.17
Parti QuébécoisPaul Unterberg3,2307.99N/A
Union NationaleLéonard Rosen6471.60-4.07
Quebec general election, 1973: D'Arcy-McGee
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalVictor Charles Goldbloom26,95893.77+3.36
Parti QuébécoisJacqueline Dugas1,2214.25-3.74
     Ralliement créditiste John Holmes 418 1.45 N/A
Union NationaleFlorian Prévost1520,53-1.07
Quebec general election, 1976: D'Arcy-McGee
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalVictor Charles Goldbloom21,24868.03-25.74
Union NationaleBarry Fridhandler7,05822.60+22.07
Parti QuébécoisJacques Mackay1,4764.73+0.48
     Democratic Alliance Elie Chalouh 950 3.04 –
     Independent Max Wollach 417 1.33 –
     Ralliement créditiste Gaëtan Gauthier 83 0.27 -1.18

References

  1. 1 2 "Victor Charles GOLDBLOOM". Assemble Nationale Quebec. Quebec National Assembly. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  2. ↑ "Victor Goldbloom, former Quebec cabinet minister, dead at 92". CBC News. 16 February 2016. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  3. ↑ "Former official languages commissioner Victor Goldbloom dies aged 92". Toronto Sun. Canadian Press. 16 February 2016. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
  4. ↑ "The Commissioner of Official Languages - Biographical Notes". www.officiallanguages.gc.ca. The Office of the Commissionner of Official Languages. Retrieved 2018-02-19.
  5. ↑ "Story". Calgary Herald. 2014-05-22. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  6. ↑ "Turkish troops roll into Iraq | CTV Montreal News". Montreal.ctvnews.ca. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  7. ↑ "Public servant Victor Goldbloom remembered as a unifying force".
  8. ↑ "Biography". Archived from the original on August 16, 2014. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops - Pope Benedict XVI grants papal honours on two Canadian pioneers in ecumenical dialogue and interfaith conversations". Cccb.ca. 2012-08-16. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  10. ↑ "Official Report * Table of Contents * Number 272-A (Official Version)". Parl.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  • The Great Names of the French-Canadian Community
  • Multicultural Canada, article in the Canadian Jewish Review on Goldbloom's wedding, June 25, 1948
  • "Biography". Dictionnaire des parlementaires du Québec de 1792 à nos jours (in French). National Assembly of Quebec.
  • Victor Goldbloom: Eminent Quebecker brought people together Globe and Mail obituary by Lisa Fitterman, Feb.28, 2016
Government offices
Preceded by
D'Iberville Fortier		 Commissioner of Official Languages
1991–1999		 Succeeded by
Dyane Adam
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