Defending Lionel Groulx
A sociology student writes a Le Devoir op‑ed defending Lionel Groulx with the heady introductory statement that the movement to rename the metro station for Oscar Peterson issu de l’anglosphère.
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david282 11:33 on 2020-06-28 Permalink
Oscar Peterson was great, but he was an anglophone jazz musician, whose family immigrated from the Caribbean, and who lived 2/3 of his life in the US and Ontario.
Lionel Groulx was a towering figure in the historiography/myth-making of the quiet revolution and modern Quebec, an intellectual giant in that realm.
It makes perfect sense that a bunch of people invested in the intellectual firmament of the Quebec state would consider re-naming Lionel Groulx station in favor of Oscar Peterson to be coming from a totally anglophone place. Just as it makes sense that anglophones – especially transplants from Canada – who have no idea who Lionel Groulx is but read something in the Gazette about how he was anti-semitic, would call for him to be canceled, and replaced with someone they do know about, and rather like.
Jack 12:36 on 2020-06-28 Permalink
Lionel Groulx was Quebec’s first professional, credentialed historian. He produced an enormous corpus and founded Universite de Montreals history department. He was an important historic figure.
This is what is named after him in Quebec…a mountain, a college, a Theatre, High Schools, Elementary schools, countless streets etc. I think their is a probably a hundred markers of this mans existence all over Quebec.
Oscar Peterson born and raised in Little Burgundy, recognized world wide as one of the greatest jazz artists of all time is celebrated in official Quebec with a small park.
The reason why is as david 182 put it “Oscar Peterson was great, but he was an anglophone jazz musician, whose family immigrated from the Caribbean,” That but is crucial in understanding how this debate will be joined.
Benoit 23:19 on 2020-06-28 Permalink
I think it would be much less controversial if the sections of Saint-Jacques or Saint-Antoine st. that are in Little-Burgundy were renamed Oscar-Peterson instead of the metro station.