Movie in the garden
Sunday, July 26, 2009, 8:00pm
THE VILLAGE RESISTS: The Forced
Municipal Mergers of
Quebec examines a significant
period in Quebec’s history
when the Parti Québécois government
imposed municipal
mergers across the province
despite a massive and organized
grassroots resistance from
the population.
The documentary traces these
developments and their impacts
on Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue,
a town that is proud of its 300-
year old history and its system
of local government.
Led by mayor Bill Tierney, residents
are given a second
chance to get their municipality
back when the Charest Liberals
win the provincial election
of 2003 based on their promise
to create a mechanism to allow
for towns to demerge. In the
end they will not only have to
fight with their own
provincial government
in the leadup
to the referendum
but as
well, the newlyformed
megacity
of Montreal.
