{"id":18503,"date":"2026-07-22T10:49:44","date_gmt":"2026-07-22T14:49:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vivredignite.org\/?p=18503"},"modified":"2026-07-22T11:02:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-22T15:02:18","slug":"newsletter-july-22-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vivredignite.org\/en\/newsletter-july-22-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Adoption of the \u201cAssisted Dying\u201d Law in France, Active Lobbying for MAID for Mental Illness, and Reflections on the Film “125, rue des Malaises”"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Our Living with Dignity Newsletter<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Dear allies,

As Qu\u00e9bec enters the annual construction holiday, we wanted to send you a brief newsletter with a few updates. The issues we work on do not take a summer break.

Thank you for your continued support throughout the summer.

Jasmin Lemieux-Lefebvre
Coordinator
Living with Dignity Citizen Network<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

France Adopts an \u201cAssisted Dying\u201d Law<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

On July 15th,\nFrench lawmakers adopted legislation establishing a right to \u201cassisted dying\u201d\n(assisted suicide and euthanasia).<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

We wish to\nreaffirm our solidarity with all those who have defended the vision of\npalliative care as the relief of physical, psychological, social, and\nspiritual\/existential suffering\u2014without ever intentionally causing death. Their\nwork continues, as does ours.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

Three\nobservations:<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

1) Media\ncoverage in Qu\u00e9bec relied primarily on reports from the Associated\nPress<\/a> and Agence\nFrance-Presse<\/a>. In both cases, the principal critical perspective came from\nthe organization Alliance VITA, whose spokesperson, Tugdual Derville, stated:<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

\u201cevery\neffort must be made to ensure that people who are suffering have immediate\naccess to palliative care and support. Presenting death as a desirable solution\ncan never be an acceptable response to suffering and is contrary to human\ndignity.\u201d<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

2) France\nwill establish both an Observatory on Assisted Dying and an Ethics Reflection\nForum on Assisted Dying. We commend the co-founders of the Collectif\nD\u00e9mocratie, \u00c9thique et Solidarit\u00e9s, Emmanuel Hirsch and Laurent Fr\u00e9mont, for\nthis initiative<\/a>.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

3) We\nstrongly recommend the YouTube video \u201cAide \u00e0 mourir : ce que le texte propose\nvraiment\u201d (“Assisted Dying: What the Bill Really Proposes”),\npublished in French on the Za<\/i> channel, which features critical\npsychology content.
\n
\n<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p>

https:\/\/youtu.be\/cF59VTq928A?si=1kQTxPCzuTe2ZhWg<\/b><\/a><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

The first\npart of the video offers a compelling response to a French MP’s argument in\nsupport of the bill, in which he quotes Victor Hugo (“To die is nothing;\nnot to live is dreadful”).<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

\n\n<\/p>

The second\npart presents a thoughtful overview of the arguments advanced by the\nanti-ableist movement (known in France as the anti-validist movement) in\nopposition to euthanasia, assisted suicide, and assisted dying.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Active Lobbying in Support of MAID for Mental Illness<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

The\nrecommendation of the federal AMAD committee not to proceed with expanding MAID\nto people whose sole underlying medical condition is a mental illness continues\nto generate debate.<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

Two open\nletters published last weekend remind us that advocacy efforts are underway to\ninfluence the federal government’s response, which Justice Minister Sean Fraser\nis expected to deliver following consultations during the summer (no timeline\nhas been announced).<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>

1) MAID\nand Mental Illness: We Must Trust Health Professionals and the Patients\nConcerned<\/a><\/i> (published in French in Le Devoir<\/i>), signed by Laurent\nBoisvert, Mona Gupta, and Val\u00e9rie Fernandez, respectively:<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>