Simone… and Valérie’s new race

There were harsh criticisms when Valérie Plante, in collaboration with illustrator Delphie Côté-Lacroix, published the comic strip in 2020 Simone Simoneau – Chronicle of a woman in politics who told through an alter ego his beginnings in the municipal world. How could the mayor dare to take the time to make a comic in the middle of COVID?

Of course, this project had been imagined before the health crisis, but launching a second volume four years later, while Montreal is damaged by this same crisis, which has exacerbated others (housing, homelessness, security), is- Is it even more open to criticism or thumbing its nose at them?

Valérie Plante bursts out laughing, before admitting that these criticisms offended her about her first book. “I found this difficult to hear, but here I want to say to those who think “she should do something else” that we keep talking about how you have to be passionate and work hard, but that you also need to take care of your mental health and take care of yourself. The way I decompress in life, because I experience pressure, is, among other things, to write. (…) I am not a robot, I am first and foremost a human being. »

The mayor felt that Simone still had things to say. “I find that my story is important to tell, to inspire other young women, in the same way that I was inspired by other women’s journeys. »

Thus, after the first adventure of Simone Simoneau who succeeded in getting elected in a popular district in her first foray into politics, this second volume entitled Like vixens recounts his race for leadership of his party, after the resignation of his leader. Who will replace him? Simone is taking the plunge, among other things, because only male candidates are proposed, but she is filled with doubts, and this will bring up certain fragilities in her, notably the memory of the sexual misconduct of her school principal when she was a child. . And the reaction of her parents, especially her mother, who believed her, which was decisive in her life.

We can guess from Simone the obstacles that Valérie Plante had to face in wanting to become the head of Projet Montréal in 2016, but did this episode with the school principal really happen?

“Simone Simoneau, it’s very autobiographical,” answers Valérie Plante soberly. “It’s very close to me and in that sense, I wanted to share with readers all of the questions that went through me when I asked myself if I wanted to become a chef. I wanted to show in this comic how in vulnerability and in trials, there is also a lot of strength that we reveal to ourselves and we must use that to go further. I also wanted to show the contribution of allies, in this case Simone’s mother. We talk a lot about #metoo, about the importance of denouncing, of going to the police, but I want to congratulate those who listen. »

Being listened to by the mayor

Without cynicism, I find that the two volumes by Simone Simoneau are quality books, and this is largely due to the work of the illustrator Delphie Côté-Lacroix, who creates superb watercolors in each panel. But also because they have the merit of reminding us that the basis of politics is to listen to the world, and that such a career begins on the ground. That it is not only reserved for gentlemen in ties who have studied law or economics. The most important thing is the involvement and the desire to improve the lives of one’s fellow citizens.

It’s true that Simone Simoneau is inspiring. Despite everything, I wonder how much personal interest there is in this type of project as the municipal elections approach. Valérie Plante could have written these books after her career, and not during it, and she is not the first to do so. But the mayor is clever enough to tell Simone’s story, and not Valérie’s.

For my part, for the first time, I have the mayor in front of me, and I want to take the opportunity to ask her this question: why is my mother, who has lived all her life in Centre-Sud, afraid in 2024 of going on Sainte-Catherine Street? Why is the Village deteriorating to this extent?

“I’m sorry,” Valérie replied, looking serious. It really pains me. I don’t want to give a flat political response, but precariousness and vulnerability have changed and intensified a lot. There was already some before COVID, which created a lot more economic and social inequalities, with the housing crisis in that, and Montreal is often determined as a place where there are services for vulnerable people. People go to large centers when they need services. I talk about it with my colleagues from Toronto and Vancouver, they too, it’s the same thing. »

I tell Valérie Plante, who reminds me that shoveling problems elsewhere does not make them disappear, that I have never been a fan of “not in my backyard” – this neighborhood inoculates us of it – but at a given moment, the courtyard is full in a neighborhood that is already busy.

“I know, the people of the Center-South are resilient, they are used to it, they tell me that there are too many. In a city, we manage humans, but often, we don’t have the powers that go with it. Like, for example, the issue of homelessness, drug addiction, the opioid crisis. These are things that we are working on with our partners, the government of Quebec, to have more resources. This is what is difficult at the municipal level. When I walk down the street, people don’t wonder if I’m dealing with homelessness or trash, they’ll tell me: Hey, I’m scared. Like your mom. That’s why it means a lot to me, because the last thing we want is for people to feel unsafe. »

Without forgetting that we risk judging her on the state of the Village, since it is her district. “It will be correct,” she said, emphasizing that Sainte-Catherine Street in the East will be redone in 2025. “I’m really looking forward to that and we’re working with everyone in the sector. »

Third mandate, third volume?

It was inevitable, I occupied a good part of this interview of approximately 30 minutes with my multiple questions on the fate of my dear Centre-Sud, neglecting a little Delphie Côté-Lacroix, whom Valérie Plante never ceases to compliment . With this second volume, the illustrator learned a little more about the mayor’s journey.

They are not currently thinking of a third volume, because Delphie Côté-Lacroix is ​​in reflection and has other projects, while Valérie Plante could not imagine writing a new book without Delphie’s touch. On the other hand, what is in the air are the elections in 2025 where Valérie Plante will seek a third term.

Does she fear the fatigue of power, which affects all politicians, men or women, when they continue? Because if Simone is a beginner, Valérie Plante is no longer really one. “Exactly, that’s what’s special,” she notes. At the same time, I have the experience that I have acquired – through COVID, it is not nothing to have experienced that – and the transformations that we have made. That means I have to be able to reinvent myself. (…) I don’t want to be on autopilot, I’m not interested at all. I don’t take anything for granted. The Montrealers chose me the first time, when they didn’t know me at all or very little; the second time, they chose me even more strongly, and what a privilege! I will still have to prove to them that I deserve their vote, their trust, but I find it stimulating. »