Stories from Montreal North
The relationship between the citizens of Montréal-Nord and their neighborhood is very intense. And this intensity is not due to chance. Alarming social indicators, underfunding of community organizations, and neighborhood stigma are all factors that make North Montrealers feel strongly about where they live. However, as diverse as Montréal-Nord is, there is a great diversity of perspectives and feelings. At best, there is a genuine attachment to the neighborhood and a deep desire to thrive there.
In the worst case scenario, Montréal-Nord becomes a transit neighborhood where people live only temporarily because of the social and financial precariousness in which they find themselves. La Converse went out into the field to discuss with North Montrealers their relationship with their neighborhood. We draw a portrait of some of them in order to explain the nature of this complex relationship.
Chance, the lover of life
“I love life,” Chance says to introduce himself. Sitting on a bench in Saint-Laurent Park, Chance shows a radiant smile as he confides this confidence. Élie Chance Kwibe is a young man from Montreal North who is continuing his studies at Cégep de Rosemont. He hopes to continue in business management later on. The 18-year-old CEGEP student is very active in his community. He thus works at L'Escale, a North Montreal community organization dedicated to the supervision of young people in the neighborhood. Getting an interview with Chance is not easy, as the young man is so busy.
We finally had to talk to him in the park next to his organization during one of his breaks, just after he had finished organizing activities for young people. If there's something Chance loves more than anything, it's definitely Montreal North. We understand this as soon as he starts to explain the reasons for his attachment to his neighborhood. “You just can't get lost culturally,” says Chance. The young man also lived in Anjou and Saint-Léonard, but he did not feel welcomed and did not make friends there. In Montreal North, on the contrary, it was extremely easy for him to integrate. North Montrealers attribute this to the multicultural side of their neighborhood.
In fact, this is what pushes him to want to raise a family there. For him, it is important for his children to know their culture of origin, and raising them in his neighborhood is the easiest way to do that. “For people who were born here, it is easier to speak their language because they will find people who speak it,” he says to illustrate his point of view. So, culturally, it's a gain.”
Monique (fictional name), the grandmother with 15 grandchildren
To say that Monique is rooted in Montreal North is an understatement. And for good reason, the eldest has lived there for 35 years. The North Montrealer agreed to share her story on the condition that we did not give her real name. So Monique is a fictional name. “I arrived here in September 1972, with only $300 in my pocket,” she says in Creole. Monique fled the dictatorship in Haiti to come and settle in Quebec. Arriving here, she learned French and started working — for a salary of $1.65 per hour.
“I was able to raise six children in Canada,” says the grandmother proudly. Some have become doctors, nurses, hockey players, accountants.” After having accomplished all this, Monique has a heavy heart. “It saddens me to see so many young Haitians in Montreal North who are doing nothing,” she confides. I have a granddaughter who will soon sign a contract to go play basketball in the United States. She got there because she has always been involved in fulfilling activities that have kept her away from the streets.” That is why Monique is asking political leaders for much more resources and better supervision for these young people. “There must be more spaces reserved for sport for them,” she says. You need sewing lessons. You need cooking classes.”
For her, there is no doubt that Montréal-Nord is a place where you can raise children. “I don't agree with people who denigrate Montreal North and Saint-Michel,” says Monique. It all depends on how you raise your kids.”
Adul, 20 years of volunteering
“I don't feel ready to leave Montréal-Nord yet.” This is the statement that Adul gives us right away at the start of our interview. Adul Sadiq Adul is a father of four children who came to live in Montréal-Nord in 2002. Immigrating to Quebec was very difficult for him. “To leave Chad and come here, it's a real obstacle course,” explains Adul. “Once you get here too, it's very difficult,” he continues. There are a lot of difficulties in integrating, especially in the workplace.” The Montrealer tells us that he had to go back to school in order to be able to integrate into the job market and is now working as an accountant.
Adul speaks of Montréal-Nord as someone who knows everything about the neighborhood. “I've lived in this neighborhood for over 20 years.
So, I saw a lot of changes and I also saw a lot of challenges to overcome,” he admits. When he starts to explain the reasons for his attachment to the neighborhood, we understand that Adul likes Montréal-Nord because he has found the same social dynamics as in his country of origin. “I come from a country where people live in communities,” he explains. When I arrived in Montreal North, I found the same thing again. People support each other.” The father agrees with Chance that Montréal-Nord facilitates the integration of immigrants. “It's a multicultural neighborhood where the immigrant who has just arrived doesn't really feel very strange,” he says. For the successful integration of immigrants, it is a must.” However, the accountant recognizes the many problems that Montréal-Nord must face. As a father of a family, he is in a good position to see them. “Summer in Montréal-Nord is very lively,” he explains. But now, for two weeks, I have noticed that we see very few cars pass by. So people are worried. They are afraid to go out after the sun goes down.”
To face these challenges, Adul recommends a behavior that he has always made sure to adopt in his civic life: commitment. He has therefore volunteered for several community organizations, both in Laval and in his neighborhood, since his arrival in Canada. In particular, he volunteers at L'Escale and Un Itinéraire Pour Tous, two community organizations that are very active in Montréal-Nord. “You have to fight to achieve a positive result,” says the North Montrealer, explaining his commitment. You don't have to stay in your corner and mope around. You have to act, intervene, give your time, raise awareness.
It is with the small stone of each person that we manage to build something for all.” “If everyone leaves, who will work to improve things? ” he concludes in the form of a question.
Edna (fictional name), from Chile to Montreal North, via Mexico
Edna, a Haitian refugee who has been living in Montréal-Nord for two months, admits that she has to stay in her neighborhood, despite her desire to leave. “I am not yet stable,” she admits. I don't know the country. As a newcomer, I can't just leave this neighborhood to live in another. I stay in Montreal North because that's where I have my work.” Edna's relationship with Montreal North resembles a love-hate relationship. The two repel each other, but still end up together because they are trapped in a dynamic of dependency. However, Edna has crossed four countries and thousands of kilometers to come and live in this neighborhood. The mother of the family first left her native country to live in the Dominican Republic.
She then lived in Chile, Mexico, and the United States, always looking for a better life for herself and her family. Racism and the difficulties in finding work and getting regularized have each time forced her to pack her bags and embark on perilous journeys to milder skies. Her husband thus had to cross South America on foot, from Chile to Mexico. “It was really hard for him,” explains Edna, a lump in his throat. Sometimes he had to look at photos of our child to give himself strength.”
Despite all the difficulties, Edna managed to enter Canada, where she and her family members applied for asylum. She now lives with them in Montreal North. Like Chance, Monique and Adul, Edna is well aware of the diversity in Montreal North. In fact, that's what attracted her. “There are a lot of Haitians here,” she tells us. Thanks to them, it's easy to find the information I need.”
Finding housing was also easier for the mother of the family. “To find a place to live, you need someone to sign your lease, or else you will have to pay double,” she says. It was another refugee like me who signed my lease, which allowed us to have our apartment.” With her apartment key in hand and surrounded by her community, Edna started her new life in Montreal North, with her heart full of hope... but was quickly disappointed. The insecurity she perceived in the neighborhood convinced her not to stay there.
“I am not affected by the violence in Montréal-Nord, because I only work and then go home,” she confides. But I see the police all the time, and I see people fighting.” For a person who has suffered so much to be able to offer her child a better future, Edna notes bitterly that Montreal North is not the right place.
“I can raise my children in Montreal, she sighs, but not in Montreal North.” Montreal North is plural. This sentence we said at the beginning summarizes well what we learn from the testimony of Chance, Monique, Adul and Edna. Montréal-Nord does not lend itself to an essential analysis of things. There is a North Montreal where gunshots are often heard, where police sirens never go silent, and where household incomes are the lowest on the island. And there is a Montreal North where people are surrounded and supervised by their communities. We must recognize the feelings of those who live in the first Montreal North, and follow the example of those who live in the second Montreal North.