Who remembers René Lévesque? | René Lévesque, beyond the obvious

The year 2022 marks the 100^and anniversary of the birth of René Lévesque and the 35^and of his death. An opportunity to look back on his career and his legacy, which journalist Guillaume Bourgault-Côté does in Who remembers René Lévesque?a documentary presented Wednesday on Télé-Québec, which shows that Quebecers do not always have short memories.

Alexandre Vigneault
The Press

“There is clearly not, in Quebec, a politician whose memory or aura will have been so great and remain so great”, slice Guillaume Bourgault-Côté, political journalist at News who carries the documentary Who remembers René Lévesque? The figures prove him right: a poll conducted for the film reveals that 66% of the population considers René Lévesque to be the most outstanding prime minister since the Quiet Revolution.

“There is him and there are the others”, sums up the journalist. He himself admits a fascination for the founder of the Parti Québécois, who was prime minister from 1976 to 1985. really all the parties: it’s a name that comes up, with a lot of respect”, explains Guillaume Bourgault-Côté, who was a political journalist at the Duty for about ten years.

The idea behind Who remembers René Lévesque? was of course to see how we remember this political figure who imposes himself beyond partisan lines. What the journalist does by questioning as many observers of the political scene (the former Liberal minister Liza Frulla, in particular) as former collaborators (Pauline Marois and Martine Tremblay, who was his chief of staff). Claude Lévesque also gives a rare interview about his father in this documentary.

Two fundamental things stand out: his integrity and his concern for the community. Pauline Marois sums up these two aspects in a sentence that René Lévesque said to her: “We don’t go into politics to help ourselves, but to serve. »

His integrity is embodied in particular in his way of receiving the verdict of the population on the evening of the 1980 referendum, judge Guillaume Bourgault-Côté, and on the very concrete level of the law on the financing of political parties.

“This law, for him, was the most important that he adopted. She completely changed the mode of financing – which does not mean that there were no problems afterwards, he nuances. It’s an important step and it’s an idea he had: get out of secret funds, and therefore of corruption. »

Sustainable development

Who remembers René Lévesque? does not dwell on Bill 101 or the national project, which may seem paradoxical given that these two issues have left a deep imprint on society and still mark political debates in Quebec. “The idea was to look beyond what we know of René Lévesque, explains Guillaume Bourgault-Côté. To see what still resonated in 2022, on the one hand, and also what we have somewhat forgotten over time, because it was more in the background. »

He easily found: Agricultural Land Protection Act, Motor Insurance Actreform of the Consumer Protection Act, creation of the Ministry of the Environment, the Office of Public Hearings on the Environment and “Declubbing”, which has contributed to giving citizens back access to the territory. Two other achievements that will have an important resonance in society are also attributable to the first government of René Lévesque: the end of taverns reserved for men and the prohibition of discrimination based on sexual orientation.

It is not only the politician that is remembered, however, recalls the documentary. The aura of René Lévesque remains because the man simply marked the population from his journalistic career, in particular through the program focus, where he explained complex issues “while respecting people’s intelligence”. Guillaume Bourgault-Côté believes that this aspect is “fundamental” in the relationship that René Lévesque had with the population. The respect he received mirrored the respect he had for his fellow citizens.

On Télé-Québec, Wednesday, 8 p.m.