The professor's use of the word and the ensuing outrage was first reported by Charley Dutil and Paige Holland in the university's anglophone student news outlet, Fulcrum.
[3] A survey suggests that the majority of Canadians agree that freedom of expression should be protected in universities, including the use of offensive language in certain contexts.
[4] However, in Quebec, the predominance of the academic freedom to offend by mentioning the N-word seems more strongly or unanimously defended, whereas in English Canada the very mention of the word is more frequently associated with a racist act: thus, according to some professors, the University of Ottawa case reveals the cultural gap between Anglophones and Francophones in Canada.
[5] In Quebec, the controversy led to the creation of an independent commission, headed by Alexandre Cloutier, to examine the question of academic freedom.
[6] According to the Premier of Quebec, François Legault, who made his statement on February 13, 2021, events like the one at the University of Ottawa are caused by a handful of radical activists who are trying to engage in censorship.