Quote of the week

“We are this city and these capitalist and power driven pieces of shit are not welcome here!”—“Collectif Ton Chien,” posting on Indymedia Quebec, after a third act of vandalism in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve in a week. Since last Thursday, six police cars and three ATMs have been torched, and 25 vehicles had their tires slashed Monday night.

10 days against racism

Remember folks, you read it here first: racism is bad.

But just in case you’re not so sure and need a little more convincing before coming to your own conclusions on the subject, the ninth annual Action Week Against Racism gets underway today, Thursday, March 20, with a series of workshops, lectures, films, photo exhibits, music and more at venues throughout the city. Running straight through until Sunday, March 30, both here and in Quebec City, this year’s theme is “The Workplace: A Racism-Free Zone,” with special emphasis being placed on the negative impact of work and employment-based racism here in la Belle Province and what we can do to better promote a Quebec society mercifully free of xenophobic attitudes.

Some events, like this Friday, March 21’s HLM All-Star Tournament hip hop extravaganza featuring Vice Verset, Sir Pathétik, Boogat and others at le National (1220 Ste-Catherine E.) require tickets and/or reservations, while others, like Sunday, March 23’s open house tour of the Montreal Holocaust Museum (5151 Côte-Ste-Catherine) do not, so you would be wise to consult the extensive schedule of activities at www.inforacisme.com before heading down to anything.

Screening human rights

Sixty years ago, the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights was founded, three years after the end of the worst war in history. As we all know, things haven’t lived up to those lofty expectations since, but those failings have often translated into good movies. Next Thursday, March 27, the third annual Montreal Human Rights Film Festival opens, with subjects like Kurdistan, illegal immigration, refugees and torture gracing the screens. And just so we don’t sit back and gasp and then forget about the misery we’ve just sat through, there will also be a special focus on Quebec, says festival coordinator Diya Angeli.

“We want to promote Québécois films, and increase their visibility so our colleagues in other international film festivals will reach out to us and ask us for their contacts,” she says. Local films will touch on topics like Latin Americans working in crappy jobs, First Nations and the strange, remote Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan.

That’s not to discount a sampling of Belgian animation, the 2006 Lebanon war, torture at Abu Ghraib and the search for freedom and expression in Iran. It might not all be pretty, but it should be pretty thought-provoking.

For a full program and screen times, see www.ffdpm.com.

by PATRICK LEJTENYI

Anarchy in the QC

While new books on Quebec history are always causes for celebration, sometimes a piece of work comes along that is so unique that it actually stands a chance of being read by people outside academia. Sur les traces de l’anarchisme au Québec (1860–1960), by Mathieu Houle-Courcelles (published by Lux Éditeur) may be that kind of book.

Sur les traces, the first work to chronicle the history of anarchism in Quebec, focuses upon anti-clerical militants, refugees from the Paris Commune, artists, Jewish revolutionaries and other immigrant groups who contributed to the development of Quebec’s anarchist movement.

“This is the first real in-depth exploration of the subject,” explains Houle-Courcelles. “There were a lot of different people who had a major influence on the evolution of anarchism in the province.”

The book launch, sponsored by Lux Éditeur and the North Eastern Federation of Anarchist Communists (NEFAC), takes place Thursday, March 20, from 5–8 p.m. at le Cagibi (5490 St-Laurent). The author will appear earlier the same day (10 a.m.–1 p.m.) at a public conference at UQÀM’s Pavillon Hubert-Aquin (room A-1785).

For more info, see luxediteur.com.

by STEVE ZYLBERGOLD

Women take Marianopolis

Marianopolis College is going back to its roots as a women’s college when it celebrates its centennial this week with a series of events marking International Women’s Month.

The college is opening its doors to the public for a screening of several movies on Friday, including Enemies of Happiness, a documentary about Afghani parliamentarian Malalai Joya, and Mirrors of Marguerite: The Power of Women, about Congregation de Notre Dame founder Marguerite Bourgeoys.

Marianopolis began in 1908 as Notre Dame Ladies College, a bilingual college founded by the Congregation on Notre Dame. The English section of the college was named Marianopolis after the Second World War, and it accepted its first male students in 1969.

The college will also host a “spoken word cabaret” Thursday, March 27, by college students and Faculty and the college’s book collection will be on display.

An art exhibit will honor Marguerite Bourgeoys, who left France in 1653 to teach in Ville-Marie, which later became Montreal. Bourgeoys recruited more teachers from France and founded the Congregation de Notre Dame, which proselytized to First Nations. She was canonized by the Pope in 1982.

For information on the events, see www.marianopolis.edu/AU/cent_womensmonth.php.

by SAMER ELATRASH

Rear-view mirror

11 YEARS AGO - MARCH 20–27, 1997

On the cover: Jean Leloup, reappearing after a six-year recording, and three-year performing, hiatus, with Le Dôme. “I got into sports—yoga, tennis……. I wanted to travel, so I went to Brazil and Cuba. I went to Costa Rica too and tried to be a surf bum—I couldn’t really pull that one off,” he says of the missing years.
•The page five photo shows four St. Patrick’s Day parade marshals urinating against a wall marked with nationalist graffiti. “Any actual political motive remains unknown.”
•Trainspotting does well in the Mirror’s Alternative Academy Awards, winning Best chase scene, (“Opening scene,” 52 per cent of votes), Most disgusting scene (“Toilet scene,” 49) and Best soundtrack (75). Begbie places third in Best fight scene (25 per cent) and Ewan McGregor is an honourable mention in Best male bod.
•“Remember the Montreal Daily News? Quebecor bought that one too!” reads one letter about the local printing giant’s purchase of the Mirror, announced the previous week.
• Under the logo: “Forty-nine per cent independent.”

Angel >> Leisurely Quebecers A new StatsCan study has confirmed what Lucien Bouchard and many Canadians already suspect: Quebecers aren’t really that into working all that hard. According to the study, Quebecers work on average 35.5 hours a week—down 0.8 hours from 1997, and below the national average of 36.5 hours a week. What’s behind this apparent laziness? A willingness to enjoy life, and not spend it all at the office. Sounds reasonable. But, lest we get the impression all we want to do is drink, loaf and take sun and beach vacations, the study also notes many Quebecers between the ages of 15 and 24 hold part-time jobs while studying. So it’s not like we can’t work; we just don’t really want to.

Insect >> Secret toxic spills Leave it up to lawyers, of all people, to bring a nasty revelation to the public eye. Oil giant Ultramar and petrochemical company Coastal are suing each other over a toxic spill that occurred five years at the Port of Montreal—and was then hushed up, with the help of the Port directors and the Quebec Environment Ministry, reports Radio-Canada. Over one million litres of paraxylene, a benzene derivative, leaked out of an Ultramar-owned reservoir leased by Coastal, and into the river, and now the two companies are blaming each other for the mess. Ultramar wants $10-million in compensation for building a new reservoir wall, while Coastal want $2.5-million, alleging the reservoir was in poor condition when it leased it. But both deserve something worse.