Quebec mothers demand climate justice at premier's Montreal office for 20th week

For the twentieth consecutive Sunday, members of the Mothers Step In (Mères au front) collective will gather outside Premier Francois Legault's Montreal office to demand that the government "respond to climate justice."

Andréanne Grimard is one of the mothers and grandmothers who have been demonstrating with their children every Sunday since April 4.

To ensure that the premier and his entourage take note of their presence, she explained that the children who accompany their mothers draw and write messages in chalk each week on the pavement in front of the Sherbrooke St. building.

"We want concrete action for the environment" was one message on the sidewalk, accompanied by a drawing of the sun and the names of several children.

"On Monday, when the premier's staff from the executive council come to the office, they see the signs. They see that we've been here for another week," said Grimard. "Science tells us that we have eight years to reduce (greenhouse gas) emissions by more than half. I've signed petitions, I've participated in the marches, the annual demonstrations, I'm working on the subject as well.

"But we don't have the luxury of waiting a year for the next demonstration, for the next report, for the next strategy, for the next budget; we really have to start today. We should have started decades ago."

The group is asking the Quebec government "that all decisions be screened for their impact on the environment and intergenerational equity."

DECENTRALIZED QUEBEC GROUP

Sometimes there are only five or six people demonstrating in front of Legault's office, and other times there are as many as 20.

Mothers Step In is a decentralized movement of about thirty groups active in different cities and villages in Quebec that has given itself the mandate to "break the inaction on climate change and protect life on Earth."

In Rouyn-Noranda, for example, Mothers Step In is involved in the Horne Foundry issue.

They have organized demonstrations in the downtown area and recently called a meeting of the Rouyn-Noranda municipal council to pressure Mayor Diane Dallaire and her councillors regarding arsenic emissions from the Horne smelter.

• READ: Quebec to give environmental update on pollution levels in Rouyn-Noranda

On May 8th, Mother's Day, the Mothers Step In of Quebec organized a demonstration, which brought together thousands of people, according to some media estimates, in front of the National Assembly.

Climate justice' was at the heart of the demonstrators' demands, but they also voiced their opposition to the third link.

The proposed highway tunnel between Quebec City and Levis is, moreover, a subject on which the mothers intend to draw public attention during the provincial election campaign that will begin in a few weeks, Grimard told The Canadian Press.

• READ: CAQ unveils a new version of the third link project between Quebec City and Levis

For the demonstration on Sunday, mothers are expected in Montreal, and the press release of the organization indicates that "colorful activities" are planned, without however specifying the nature.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Aug. 14, 2022.