René Lévesque mural inaugurated in Montreal

Several elected officials and former politicians like Lucien Bouchard and Gilles Duceppe attended the inauguration of the large mural in honor of René Lévesque in the borough of Villeray-Saint-Michel-Parc-Extension in Montreal.

The new mural overlooks a drive-thru restaurant, just metres away from the service road on 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 in an interview by The Canadian Press.

René-Lévesque won his first election in 1960.

The immense mural will allow “thousands of Quebecers who pass by on the metropolitan boulevard” and “our youth” to remember that “René Lévesque is not only a boulevard, but a historical figure, full of courage and openness,” said businessman Pierre Karl Péladeau.

“Lévesque never ceased to be present in our life,” said Lucien Bouchard. “We are gathered today to highlight his latest transformation, 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,” said Bouchard.

Tribute to a cultural builder

The mural was created by artist Kevin Ledo and under the portrait reads a statement made by 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 project was initiated by the René-Lévesque Foundation and the Mu organization, which creates mural to pay tribute to the cultural figures from Montreal.

“His love of language, his defense of writing and the French language” and of “cultural identity” make René Lévesque a cultural builder, explained Mu General Director Elizabeth-Ann Doyle.

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,” said Plante.

The current leader of the party that Lévesque founded in 1968 also spoke at the mural presentation.

“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,” said Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon.

The French Language Ministry is associated with the project, which is part of the Lévesque Year, which gave rise to various commemorations on the 100th birthday of the former premier, from 2022 to 2023.

René Lévesque was born on Aug. 24, 1922.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews