More than 80 people took to the streets in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield on September 3 to demand that the candidates in the upcoming provincial election prioritize the underfunding of community organizations.
Members of the CDC du Haut-Saint-Laurent and the CDC de Beauharnois-Salaberry launched the second phase of the “Communautaire à boutte!” movement, which calls on the provincial government to both recognize and fund community-based work.
“Together, we have shown that we are mobilized,” said Vanessa Richer, a media spokesperson for the local chapter of the province-wide movement. “Today we are gathering our collective strength to continue building change,” she added, noting that despite the challenges facing the sector, its members would continue to support one another.
“We are keeping this alive because, while we have no idea what is going to happen with the election, the needs are still there,” said CDC du Haut-Saint-Laurent director Marie Rachel Charlebois. “We want to be present in the debates. We want to be present in this election, so the candidates are aware of the needs, especially in our rural context.”
The Communautaire à Boutte movement first began last spring when community organizations across the province launched a two-week strike between March 23 and April 2. Local actions culminated in a gathering outside the CDC du Haut-Saint-Laurent offices on March 30, where 50 people staged a protest attended by Huntingdon MNA Carole Mallette.
The community groups have been asking for stable, predictable and multi-year funding that will allow organizations to focus on their missions. The provincial movement released its demands for a more widely recognized and better-supported community sector as part of its election platform on September 4.
This followed in the wake of a meeting between Quebec Premier Christine Frechette and representatives for the Réseau québécois de l’action Communautaire autonome (RQ-ACA) and the Communautaire à boutte movement on August 25. In a press release, the groups confirmed that the government refused to do more for the sector, while calling on the party leaders to ensure the crisis in the community sector plays a role in this election.
“It is not a question of resources,” said Mathieu Gélinas, a co-spokesperson for the Communautaire à boutte movement. “It is a question of political choices.”
Members of the movement from across the province will gather in Trois-Rivières on September 15 for a national demonstration. Protestors will take to the streets again on September 23 at 6:30 p.m. in front of the Radio-Canada building in Montreal, where the main party leaders will be present for the televised leaders’ debate before the October 5 election.