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But on Wednesday, Trudeau faced rare heat from some members of that English-speaking community.

Judy Ross, the woman who asked Trudeau the question about mental health, said she “felt disrespected” when he explained why he would answer only in French.

“I was so disappointed that by the time he got through that bit of fantasy land, I really didn’t take in the rest,” Ross said in an interview. “I was too miffed.

“It (mental health) is a topic that’s very difficult to explain and express in your own language, let alone a second language. Even people who are bilingual prefer to have their services in their mother tongue. And I thought, with his life experience, he would be sensitive to that.”

The president of an association representing anglophones in the province’s Eastern Townships said Trudeau should apologize to the English-speaking community.

Gerald Cutting said the prime minister’s refusal to use both languages undermined the anglophone community’s long struggle to obtain access to services in their own language.

“There were people in that audience who felt they were demoted to second-class citizens, and that needs to be addressed,” he said in an interview.

He said Trudeau’s attempt to moderate his stance Wednesday was insufficient and that he should meet with members of the anglophone community to clarify his remarks.

Another organization, the Quebec Community Groups Network, also called for an apology.

“The QCGN cannot imagine the prime minister or any other bilingual politician replying in English to a French question posed in New Brunswick, Manitoba or any other province where the main language is English,” said president James Shea.

“Even staunch defenders of the French language like (former Parti Québécois premier) Rene Lévesque would never have made such a misstep.”

The prime minister’s actions did find an unlikely defender, however, in the president of the sovereigntist Societe Saint-Jean-Baptiste, who said Trudeau initially showed the right instincts before modifying his position Wednesday.

“But the prime minister didn’t commit to it all the way, since he backtracked a few hours later.”

– With files from Vicky Fragasso-Marquis