Several elected officials and former politicians, such as Lucien Bouchard and Gilles Duceppe, participated Friday morning in the inauguration of a large mural in honour of René Lévesque, in the borough of Villeray — Saint-Michel — Parc-Extension, in Montreal.
The new mural overlooks the drive-thru area of a popular fast food chain, just metres from the service road of the noisy Highway 40 in the Villeray neighbourhood.
“He was elected here three times, we must not forget that,” so “I think the place is quite suitable,” said former Bloc leader Gilles Duceppe, interviewed by The Canadian Press.
This was a reference to the riding that was formerly called Montreal-Laurier, where René-Lévesque won his first election under the Liberal banner in 1960.
The immense mural will allow “thousands of Quebecers who pass by the metropolitan boulevard” and “our youth” to remember that “René Lévesque is not only a boulevard, but a historical figure, full of courage, exemplarity and openness,” indicated businessman Pierre Karl Péladeau, who was invited to give a speech.
René Lévesque “never ceased to be present in our collective life,” said Lucien Bouchard, and “we are gathered today to highlight his latest metamorphosis, namely his appearance in the visual daily life of the city.”
In an era “that likes to project itself through images, it was fitting that the urban display of a large-format René Lévesque be added as a reminder of what this man represents for us.”
A “model of integrity” and “political commitment” and “a man who loved us, who made us dream and reconnect with pride,” stressed former Prime Minister Bouchard.
Tribute to a cultural builder
The mural was created by artist Kevin Ledo and under the portrait of the man who was Prime Minister from 1976 to 1985, we can read this statement made by René Lévesque during a speech before the French National Assembly in 1977: “Let a free people assert themselves who can express in French, with their own accent, all the dimensions of today’s world.”
The work is an initiative of the René-Lévesque Foundation and the Mu organization, which has given itself the mission of creating murals to pay tribute to the cultural builders of Montreal.
“His love of language, his defense of writing and the French language” and of “cultural identity” make René Lévesque a cultural builder, explained Elizabeth-Ann Doyle, general director of Mu.
Valérie Plante said she was very honoured, “as mayor of the only French-speaking metropolis in America”, to participate in the inauguration of the mural.
“I am very happy that all those who pass through the city” can “see the portrait of a great man who left his mark on Quebec and who left his mark on Montreal,” the mayor stressed during a speech.
The current leader of the party that René Lévesque founded in 1968 also spoke before dozens of dignitaries.
“The greatest fight of his life, the fight that gave him the most trouble on a personal and professional level, the one that keeps Quebecers mobilizing today, is without a shadow of a doubt the national destiny of Quebecers. If you look at the work, you will see in his eyes the benevolence, the feeling that he made his “piece” in this story, as they say in Quebec, but also the questioning, namely whether Quebec will realize its destiny,” indicated the leader of the Parti Québécois, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon.
The Ministry of the French Language is associated with this project, which is part of the Lévesque Year, which gave rise to various commemorations of the 100th anniversary of the birth of the former prime minister, throughout 2022 and 2023.
René Lévesque was born on August 24, 1922.
The mural, inaugurated on Friday, is in some ways the legacy of the Lévesque Year.