John Harold Broussard of Louisiana (91.9 The Bend Photo)
Many Cajuns from Louisiana, USA are visiting New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island this week participating in reunions and events related to the Acadian World Congress.
John Harold Broussard is a descendant of the early Cajun leader Joseph Broussard de Beausoleil who arrived in Louisiana with the first group of Acadians following the Great Expulsion.
Speaking at a gathering in Dieppe, Broussard says it’s been very moving to be here given the remarkable similarities of the culture and the language between the Acadians and the Cajuns.
He says the French dialect is almost identical here compared to south Louisiana and the two groups can easily converse with one another.
“We love family, we love friendship… and we love our “joie de vivre”. We like to have fun. We work hard all day and we take care of our family and we play hard at night.”
Broussard says French is not his first language but his grandmother taught him as a young child growing up on a dairy and sugar cane farm.
He is a proponent of French immersion which is being expanded in Louisiana and he says many Acadians are teaching the language in the state.
Broussard says there are differences in the cuisine but he adds Cajun food is not as spicy as some may think although they do have many seasonings.
He is named after his Louisiana hometown of Broussard which has been a twinned community with Cap-Pele since 1984.
Officials from both places have been meeting as part of a cultural exchange during the Congress.
