Guy Rocher’s national tribute ceremony Oct. 2
Posted September 18, 2025 12:35 pm.
The national tribute ceremony for the late sociologist Guy Rocher will be held on Oct. 2 at the Salle Pierre-Mercure at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM).
The office of Premier François Legault announced the details of the ceremony on Thursday, a few weeks after the death of this giant of the Quiet Revolution at the age of 101.
The event is being organized in collaboration with the family and friends of the deceased, officials said.
Before the ceremony, Rocher will lie in state from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Agora of the Judith-Jasmin Pavilion at UQAM, where the public will be able to pay their respects.
The ceremony will then be held in the afternoon, from 2 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. in the Salle Pierre-Mercure. As with other events of this kind, a limited number of tickets will be available to the public.
Further details about the ceremony will be released in the coming days.
In the meantime, the public can still sign the online condolence book.
“A committed sociologist, Guy Rocher greatly contributed to shaping today’s Quebec and enabled it to assert itself in its culture, language, and values, including secularism,” said Premier François Legault in a press release.
“His contribution to the Charter of the French Language and our current education system propelled Quebec into modernity. His legacy is invaluable.”
Rocher, born in Berthierville on April 20, 1924, died at the age of 101 on Sept. 3.
Rocher contributed to several major changes in Quebec’s contemporary history. He was a member of the Parent Commission, which laid the foundations for Quebec’s education system.
He was also one of the architects of Bill 101, on French as the official language of Quebec, adopted by René Lévesque’s government in 1977.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
