A meeting of Black Quebec political officials in Montreal North recently was a celebration of sorts for a number of reasons, say those who attended.
“We are now 36 political leaders in Quebec,” beamed Emmanuel Dubourg, federal Liberal MP for the Montreal riding of Bourassa who organized the gathering. “I’m talking about senators, MP’s, (MNA’s) and councillors.”
Never before in Quebec’s history have there been as many people of African descent in political office, he pointed out. Hence the gathering, the second in as many years, to brainstorm and find solutions to common issues.
Among the 36 is a group of Black women, seven in total, all elected to office in Montreal. That, too, is a first.
Beyond the historical significance, the women, six from Projet Montreal and one from the opposition Ensemble Montreal, say it means they have someone to share concerns only other Black women understand.
“It’s as silly as dealing with makeup when we have pictures to take,” smiled Ericka Alneus, “as well as dealing with certain issues when we lose someone from our communities. So yeah, it’s empowering.”
Alneus is city councillor for Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie and a member of the administration’s executive committee.
Gracia Kasoki Katahwa, another of the women, is borough mayor of Montreal’s Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce. She also was recently named to the city’s executive committee. Katahwa agrees with Alneus but added that, as a group, they can also help highlight or clarify concerns from certain communities to others in the city administration.
By addressing their political colleagues on behalf of Black constituents, she pointed out, “they have the echoes of different parts of the Black communities, so it gives a different weight to the things that we share to our leadership.”
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“I think it was important for us to show up for the community,” Alneus stressed.
Though they insisted that they are thrilled about serving in public office, the women noted that being a Black woman in politics can be really tough. It’s why they formed a caucus as a way to support each other, regardless of political background.
“This is really, really a true gift and blessing,” Katahwa stated. “I can think of people who were here before me, somebody like Yolande James who was alone.”
James is a former provincial MNA for the Quebec Liberals.
One challenge some expressed — the feeling that as Black women, they are held to a higher standard than their white counterparts.
“Publicly we are judged differently and I think this is probably one of the main differences that I can see,” Katahwa said.
Others feel they have to work twice as hard and not make mistakes.
Former Quebec Liberal party leader Dominique Anglade, now an adjunct professor at HEC Montreal, agrees and observed that “every level of diversity brings a level of complexity. So, if you are a female in politics, it’s harder; if you’re a Black female in politics, it is even harder, and you have to be aware of this and enter politics with your eyes wide open.”
On the mind of many of the Black politicians at the Montreal North meeting was Dominique Olivier, a Montreal city councillor and former chair of the city’s executive committee. Olivier, who is Black, quit the city’s executive committee last fall over controversy regarding expenses when she headed the city’s public consultation office.
None of the politicians at the meeting wanted to voice their views publicly but some confided that they think Olivier, who was not at the meeting, was treated unfairly. Some see that as just one example of how Black women in power are sometimes targeted. The former executive committee has launched a lawsuit against TVA group for defamation.
In spite of obstacles they face, there is optimism among the Black women’s caucus about the future for people of African descent in Quebec and Montreal politics. Alneus, who says she’s having a blast as a politician, thinks she has a duty, regardless of the difficulties.
“I feel that working twice as hard will make it easier for future women,” she told Global News. “Some women before me had to work even harder for me to be where I am now. Doors and windows are being opened, but we have to make sure that they remain open.”
Anglade, who did not rule out a return to politics, agreed and said the gains made should not be take for granted.
“For this to be sustainable you also have to nourish it to make sure that people decide that they still want to enter politics,” she stressed. For Black youth who are considering politics but might be put off by the obstacles, she urged, “If you have the capacity to make a difference in the lives of others, you have the responsibility to do it.”
Katahwa, who said she feels supported by her political leadership, stressed that when racialized people get into they should be supported.
“As a society we need to ask ourselves, ‘How can we make sure that they thrive in those positions, how can we make sure that when we break a glass ceiling we don’t fall,’ ” she explained.
In her view, the 2025 municipal elections, as well as upcoming federal and provincial elections, will be the real test.
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