Montreal’s Chinatown has been an integral part of the downtown landscape for over a century. A historic place of welcome, gathering and solidarity for immigrants and Montrealers of Asian origin, it is coupled with a rich heritage and cultural vocation that gives the downtown area its dynamism.
As a tourist, gastronomic and economic hub of the metropolis, it strongly contributes to Montreal’s influence on the international scene, in addition to being a popular place for Montrealers.
Last May, we launched a real cry from the heart for the survival of Chinatown, greatly shaken by the pandemic. The absence of tourists, the disaffection of the clientele and the multiplication of anti-Asian racist acts have dealt a heavy blow to Montreal’s Chinatown – the oldest in North America – and its communities. The scale of the situation also required an open letter, signed by more than twenty actors from the business community and Chinatown.
In the process, the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal and its partners held the strategic meeting on the revival and future of Chinatown, which brought together many Montreal leaders of Chinese origin to launch an important dialogue between the actors from Chinese and Asian communities and the business community. At the end of this event, which highlighted the historical, economic and social contribution of communities to the development of Chinatown, a clear call for commitment and mobilization emerged to ensure its sustainability and prosperity.
Possible solutions have been put forward to strengthen the feeling of belonging of all Montrealers to Chinatown. We had to act, and quickly.
Initiatives were then deployed to strengthen collaboration between the Chinese and Asian communities, the various levels of government and several actors in the city center. One such example is the Asian Public Market, which has rocked the Oasis – Place of Wishes throughout the summer and attracted many followers of Asian street food. This project was made possible thanks to the collaboration of the Night Market, La Pépinière – Espaces Collectifs and the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership, as well as the support of the Ville-Marie borough, Tourisme Montréal and the Ministère tourism.
In addition to being a privileged opportunity for many Montrealers to reconnect with Chinatown, the Asian Public Market has also increased traffic in this area, which has been deserted for months due to the pandemic.
Let’s take action
The time has come to show our solidarity with Chinatown and its commercial fabric through an even more concrete gesture.
Recently, the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal launched the crowdfunding campaign “Together for our Chinatown”, an initiative supported by the Federation of Chambers of Commerce of Quebec and by the Government of Canada, which aimed to support the revival of Chinatown businesses and retailers. For each $ 30 voucher spent on the La Ruche platform, the Chamber added an additional $ 20 to be spent at the fifty participating businesses. Within a week, all the vouchers have expired.
The resounding success of this campaign demonstrates Montrealers’ attachment to Chinatown and its businesses, as well as the importance given to its vitality, inherent in that of downtown and the metropolis.
This is another example of a successful collaboration that we hope will inspire many more.
We want to send a clear message to all stakeholders who share the territory of Chinatown and downtown: more than ever, we must commit ourselves collectively to its future and its prosperity. We hope that the intercultural bridges created by this kind of initiative will inspire the business communities of other metropolises in Canada, such as Toronto, Ottawa, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Vancouver, in their response to the relaunch of their own Chinatown. This crisis generated by the pandemic gives us the opportunity to build a society that is at the same time united, inclusive and prosperous. Let’s answer the call.
* Co-signers: Steven Guilbeault, Member of Parliament for Laurier – Sainte-Marie and Canadian Minister of Environment and Climate Change; Me Ponora Ang, president of the Montreal Chinese Hospital Foundation; YiFang Eva Hu, owner of the Le Coq Frit chain and co-founder of the Asian Night Market and the Asian Market; Emmanuelle Legault, President and CEO of the Palais des congrès de Montréal; Charles Milliard, President and CEO of the Federation of Quebec Chambers of Commerce; Benny YW Shek, president of the Association of Chinese restaurants of Quebec and owner of the restaurants Kim Fung and Dynastie; Monique Simard, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership