We live in a strange time. Capitalism as we practice it involves the whole society in a kind of unbridled individualism, in a frenetic “I-me-me”. However, when misfortune strikes, when fire threatens us, our naturalness returns at a gallop, the “us” takes over. We want to help our neighbour, we want to protect the public good.
Before talking about the citizens themselves, a word about the absolutely crucial role currently played by municipalities.
The current crisis, another, reminds us that, when a tragedy occurs, the first state reactions are local. Nine times out of ten, it is the municipalities, the cities, which organize the first response to the crisis.
It is the mayors who express the needs of the victims, who give watchwords, who are called to account.
It was Manon Cyr, mayor of Chibougamau – a force of nature – who declared a state of emergency, ensured the evacuation of her people and remained on site to defend her municipality until the last second. At the other end of the road, Serge Bergeron, mayor of Roberval, spent a whole night preparing for the arrival of the evacuees from Chibougamau. Their teams, the municipal civil servants, are the first to the front, and sometimes the only ones.
PHOTO CHARLES WILLIAM PELLETIER, THE PRESS
Manon Cyr, Mayor of Chibougamau, defended her municipality until the last second.
Especially outside the big centres, the municipality is often the only local institution with a real immediate capacity to act. It has officials, it has budgets, it knows its territory, it already works with all the organizations in the area: community organizations, private companies, etc. I like to repeat that during the 2017 floods in Gatineau, the army helped us a lot. But the soldiers were 70. Our employees were 900 on the ground and they remained there for months after the departure of the soldiers. In a crisis, it is the state that protects us. Outside the major centres, the state is essentially the municipality.
When cities are weakened by their deficient taxation, which is the case, when cities are weakened by a legal framework that suffocates them1which is also the case, it is all of Quebec’s resilience that is diminishing.
Now let’s talk about citizens.
Citizen mobilization is also local. It is locally that we can channel people’s extraordinary desire for mutual aid. We are currently seeing superb examples of mobilization, solidarity, self-sacrifice. Workers do not count their hours and take risks. Bosses work night and day to make sure they make the right choices and empower their troops. In dark offices, white collars make evacuation plans, order equipment, invent aid programs, they too sacrifice hours of family life. Citizens, companies, sometimes children, take initiative after initiative to help those who are suffering.
Most of this work is done behind the scenes. For one person who will be grateful, there are a thousand of whom we will never say anything. The Cid would say this: “O how many actions, how many famous exploits / Have remained without glory in the midst of darkness. Where everyone, the only witness of the great blows he gave / Could not discern where the fate inclined! »
Yes, crises bring out what is beautiful in us.
During the many disasters that Gatineau has experienced, if there is one group that I have never doubted, it is the citizens.
When we need them, they are there. You will certainly give me some good examples of exceptions, but they would confirm the rule: individuals want to help the group.
When people were told to stay home to make room for emergency crews, almost instantly the streets became deserted. When we asked them to help our blue collar workers make sandbags, our production capacity doubled. Donations of material goods have always exceeded the needs of the victims. From the start of COVID-19, when we were all confined, neighborhood associations and seniors’ associations, on their own initiative, made calls to their members for news.
Citizens have never let their community down. Never.
When everything is going well, we can get lost in our navel, when things are going badly, we start thinking about “us” again. I hope that the misfortunes that strike us will at least have the effect of further consolidating our desire to show solidarity and, of course, our local state capacity to transform this good will into concrete actions.