Richard Marceau (born August 25, 1970) is a Canadian former Bloc Québécois Member of Parliament, who served as an MP for nearly nine years. His father was a civil servant and a practising Catholic, and his mother Michelle was a homemaker.

Marceau was educated by priests in Quebec City.

Political career

Marceau was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada as a Member of Parliament in the 1997 federal election for the Bloc Québécois (which advocates for national independence for the Canadian province of Quebec) in the riding of Charlesbourg at the age of 26. He served in Parliament for the better part of nine years, and was a sovereignist. He served beginning in 2005 as Chair of the Parliament's Subcommittee on the process for appointment to the Federal Judiciary of the Standing Committee on Justice, Human Rights, Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness. He also served as the Bloc's critic to the Solicitor General of Canada, International Trade, Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, Intergovernmental Affairs, and the King's Privy Council for Canada. He was also the party's spokesperson in English Canada. Marceau ran unsuccessfully as the Parti Québécois candidate in Charlesbourg in the 2007 Quebec election.

Conversion to Judaism

Marceau converted to Judaism in 2004, 10 years after his marriage to Lori Beckerman, who had been a fellow law student of his and was Jewish.

The Canada-Israel Committee and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs

From 2006 to 2011, Marceau worked for the Canada-Israel Committee.

Writing

In 2011, Marceau published A Quebec Jew: From Bloc Québécois MP to Jewish Activist, detailing his spiritual journey from a Catholic family to Judaism against the backdrop of Quebec politics.

See also

  • List of converts to Judaism
  • List of Jewish Canadian politicians

References

  • Richard Marceau (September 28, 2023). "Our government unwittingly applauded a man who fought for the Nazis. We must take steps to ensure it never happens again," The Forward
  • Richard Marceau (April 8, 2024). "Richard Marceau: Why we're taking the federal government to court over UNRWA funding," National Post.