Pure black and white? A new hit comedy in Quebec brings race relations into question.(Pure Laine)

WHERE I LIVE up in the north-eastern corner of North America, the term pure laine (literally translated as "pure wool") is used to describe someone who is born in Quebec, francophone (French-speaking), white and directly descended from French European stock. It is also now the name of a new French-language sitcom, Pure Laine.

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Initially, I cringed at the thought of yet another TV show glorifying Quebec's majority. Here, people first identify as being francophone, anglophone or allophone (Canada-speak for having a mother tongue other than English or French). The term "ethno-cultural community" is used to describe anyone who is non-francophone, non-white and of a non-Catholic background.

Despite my own roots, which are white and mostly francophone, I do not use pure laine to describe myself, and the expression makes me a little antsy. Even though I know most people use it to affirm their identity--to invoke a sense of pride rather than one of exclusion--not many see the expression's racist implications.

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To my delight, this very blind spot turned out to be the focus of Pure Laine--a side-splittingly funny sitcom that takes no prisoners when it comes to discussing issues of race and identity.

The show's narrator and main character is Dominique Michel, a Haitian immigrant and high school teacher who has been living in Montreal for the past 15 years. He is married to Chantal, a pure laine, unilingual ...