Claire Morissette
Encyclopedia
Claire Morissette was a Canadian cycling advocate who fought for equal cyclists' rights in Montreal
since 1976. She was a member of the group Le Monde à Bicyclette. Notable were the stunts they organized to raise consciousness of automobile transportation's negative impact on cities and their inhabitants, such as bringing snow skis and tobaggons on subways to protest the exclusion of bicycles and a die-in
on the corner of St. Catherine and University streets in which 100 people lay in the street adorned with fake blood and surrounded with wrecked bikes.
She published one book in 1994, Deux roues, un avenir (Two Wheels, One Future), available only in French. The book promotes using bikes for urban transportation.
In 1999, she founded Cyclo Nord-Sud, an organization that gives used bikes to third world countries. They have shipped over 20,000 bikes to 13 countries. In the same year, she also founded Communauto, a car-share company.
She died on July 20, 2007, aged 57, following a battle with breast cancer
. In her honour, on June 16, 2008, Montreal's city council voted unanimously to name its De Maisonneuve Boulevard
bicycle path
after Morissette.
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
since 1976. She was a member of the group Le Monde à Bicyclette. Notable were the stunts they organized to raise consciousness of automobile transportation's negative impact on cities and their inhabitants, such as bringing snow skis and tobaggons on subways to protest the exclusion of bicycles and a die-in
Die-in
A die-in is a form of protest where participants simulate being dead.- Overview :In the simplest form of a die-in, protesters simply lie down on the ground and pretend to be dead, sometimes covering themselves with signs or banners...
on the corner of St. Catherine and University streets in which 100 people lay in the street adorned with fake blood and surrounded with wrecked bikes.
She published one book in 1994, Deux roues, un avenir (Two Wheels, One Future), available only in French. The book promotes using bikes for urban transportation.
In 1999, she founded Cyclo Nord-Sud, an organization that gives used bikes to third world countries. They have shipped over 20,000 bikes to 13 countries. In the same year, she also founded Communauto, a car-share company.
She died on July 20, 2007, aged 57, following a battle with breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
. In her honour, on June 16, 2008, Montreal's city council voted unanimously to name its De Maisonneuve Boulevard
De Maisonneuve Boulevard
De Maisonneuve Boulevard is a major westbound boulevard located in downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is named after the founder of Montreal, Paul Chomedey de Maisonneuve. De Maisonneuve Boulevard is about 11 kilometres long and begins on Havre Street in the east end, and ends in the...
bicycle path
Bicycle Path
Bicycle Path is a historic road in Central Suffolk County on Long Island, New York, built in the late 19th Century in order to capitalize on the bicycle craze of that period...
after Morissette.