Montreal's Gay VillageA gay village is an urban geographic location with generally recognized boundaries where a large number of lesbian, gay, transgender, and bisexual people live or frequent...
(
The Village,
FrenchFrench is a Romance language globally spoken by about 65 million people as a first language , by 50 million as a second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired foreign language, with significant speakers in 57 countries. Most native speakers of the language live in France,...
,
Le Village gai or simply
Le Village) is located on
Saint Catherine StreetSaint Catherine Street is the primary commercial artery of downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It crosses the central business district from west to east, beginning at the corner of Claremont Avenue and De Maisonneuve Boulevard in the city of Westmount, traversing the borough of Ville-Marie, and...
East, centred on
BeaudryBeaudry is a station on the Green Line of the Montreal Metro rapid transit system operated by the Société de transport de Montréal . It is in Montreal's Gay Village, part of the Centre-South district in the borough of Ville-Marie, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada...
metroThe Montreal Metro is a rubber-tired metro system, and the main form of public transportation underground in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada....
station, and on Amherst Street in the Ville-Marie borough of the city. The Village runs approximately from Berri Street to De Lorimier Street on
Saint Catherine StreetSaint Catherine Street is the primary commercial artery of downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It crosses the central business district from west to east, beginning at the corner of Claremont Avenue and De Maisonneuve Boulevard in the city of Westmount, traversing the borough of Ville-Marie, and...
, and between
Sherbrooke StreetSherbrooke Street is a major east-west artery and at in length, is the second longest street on the Island of Montreal. The street begins in the town of Montreal West and ends on the extreme tip of the island in Pointe-aux-Trembles, intersecting Gouin Boulevard and joining up with Notre-Dame...
and René-Lévesque Boulevard on Amherst Street, a distance of nearly two kilometres, making it the largest in North America in terms of scope of the complete area.
Formerly a poor working-class neighbourhood, part of the Centre-South area of the city, the area was occupied by the
gayThe term gay was originally used, until well into the mid-20th century, primarily to refer to feelings of being "carefree", "happy", or "bright and showy"; it had also come to acquire some connotations of "immorality" as early as 1637....
and
lesbianLesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
community after the huge expulsion of many gay businesses from an area closer to
Saint Lawrence BoulevardFor the Ottawa road, see St. Laurent Boulevard. For the Gatineau road called "Boulevard Saint-Laurent", see Boulevard des AllumettièresSaint Lawrence Boulevard or boulevard Saint-Laurent is a major street in Montreal, Quebec, Canada...
(or "The Main" as the locals call it). The area has been considerably brightened up, thanks in part to recent investment from the various levels of all governments.
Indeed, despite repression as late as the early 1990s, recent government support of "Le Village" has been significant. All three levels of government are aggressively promoting the Village, and with the accepting climate of Quebec, and gay life in Montreal as a tourist attraction. In recognition of the Village's importance to the city, the borough of Ville-Marie recently hung a rainbow flag in its council chambers, and recently redecorated the entrance to the Beaudry metro station with rainbow pillars. The Village is specifically marked on official city maps as "Le Village".
Finally, the government lent their support in securing the
Gay GamesThe Gay Games is the world's largest sporting and cultural event organized by and specifically for LGBT athletes, artists, musicians, and others. It welcomes participants of every sexual orientation and every skill level...
. The city later lost the right to hold the Games under that name because the
Federation of Gay Games-Concept and official purpose:According to the Federation of Gay Games :- Schism in LGBT sports communities over Gay Games VII :In 2001, the Federation of Gay Games awarded the seventh edition of the Gay Games to Montréal, Quebec, Canada for 2006, but the FGG removed its sanction in late 2003...
considered their plans too ambitious. Instead,
Montréal Rendez-Vous 2006, the first edition of the
World OutgamesThe World Outgames are a sporting and cultural event hosted by the gay community. With over 12,000 participants, the 1st World Outgames, held in 2006, was the largest international event to be held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada since the 1976 Summer Olympiad. These first Outgames were not as...
, took place in Montréal, with the 2006 Gay Games moved to
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
.
Gays and lesbians live all over the highly accepting city, so their residential density in the Village is only slightly higher than elsewhere. However, the Village contains a variety of shops and services targeting the community, and so serves as an entertainment and tourism centre rather than as a gay neighbourhood strictly speaking. A wide range of local media, radio and TV stations are located in the same area as the gay community.
The Village contains a wide variety of nightlife: bars and discotheques catering to all tastes (Montréal has more gay bars and discotheques than Paris, and as many as San Francisco or New York), including three very large entertainment complexes, one of which is the largest of its kind in the world. There are also a wide range of boutiques, restaurants, cafés, bed-and-breakfasts, and major chain-style hotels.
The Société de Développement Commercial (SDC) du Village (The Commercial Development Corporation of the Village)
http://www.sdcvillage.com represents the businesspeople of the Village. The Centre communautaire des gais et lesbiennes de Montréal (Montreal Gay and Lesbian Community Centre) through the Mario-Racine, Foundation is currently planning on constructing an important community complex in the heart of the Village.
The city also contains a number of gay establishments outside of the Village area, particularly in areas that are historic gay neighbourhoods (see below). The Gay Village is bordered to the west by the new
Quartier des SpectaclesQuartier des Spectacles is an entertainment district located in the eastern section of Downtown Montreal. The area is currently undergoing gentrification and urban renewal that will turn it into the centre for Montreal's cultural events and festivals....
entertainment district.
History
The first recorded gay establishment in North America was Montrealer Moise Tellier’s apple and cake shop on Craig Street (now
Saint Antoine StreetSaint Antoine Street is a street located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The street is home to many of Old Montreal's finest hotels, and a few small businesses.-History:...
) in 1869, where men met and touched each other's bodies.
There were generally two concentrations of establishments where gays were welcome, or that, by the seventies, became openly gay businesses. This mirrored Montreal's more language-segregated culture.
These were:
- The West End of Montreal's downtown. It was centered in the western end of the downtown area of the city, with bars on Stanley Street
Stanley Street is a street located in downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Molson's Bank was located on the street and employed Joachim von Ribbentrop.-History:...
and Drummond StreetDrummond Street is a street located in downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. A mix of businesses are located on this street such as bookstores, pubs and restaurants...
, and with Shaughnessy VillageShaughnessy Village is a neighbourhood of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, located on the western side of the Ville-Marie borough. It is bounded by Guy Street to the east, Atwater Street to the west and René Lévesque Boulevard/Ville-Marie Expressway to the south...
west of Guy Street as its residential neighbourhood. In fact, This was seen as the mostly anglophone gay village.
By the fifties, the Dominion Square tavern was known as a place where gays could meet (it still exists today but has lost its gay clientèle), and Dominion Square (now
Dorchester SquareDorchester Square is a large urban square in downtown Montreal. Together with Place du Canada, the area is just over 21,000 m
2 or 2.1 ha of manicured and protected urban parkland bordered by René Lévesque Boulevard to the south, Peel Street to the west, Metcalfe to the east and Dominion...
) was seen as an area where men could meet and cruise.
As is traditional, until the 1980s, gay life was centered around bars and taverns, and some restaurants, who tolerated a gay clientèle.
By the late sixties and early seventies, many gay-owned or gay-open businesses existed, and it became the city's main gay concentration, though it was still relatively marginal and kept discreet.
The businesses consisted mainly of clubs, where men could dance.
- The Main, the strip of businesses on Saint-Laurent Boulevard, and east along Saint Catherine Street
Saint Catherine Street is the primary commercial artery of downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It crosses the central business district from west to east, beginning at the corner of Claremont Avenue and De Maisonneuve Boulevard in the city of Westmount, traversing the borough of Ville-Marie, and...
East, an area also known as "Le Red Light", since the businesses catered to a marginal clientèle. The east had a more francophoneThe adjective francophone means French-speaking, typically as primary language, whether referring to individuals, groups, or places. Often, the word is used as a noun to describe a natively French-speaking person....
clientèle. Here, the businesses consisted mainly of taverns, often featuring drag- In science and technology :* Drag , a combination of aerodynamic or hydrodynamic forces which tends to reduce speed* Drag coefficient, in physics, a quantity used in analyzing the amount of aerodynamic drag caused by fluid flow...
shows .
Only one or two establishments were located in what is now the
Village gai.
The businesses in these two areas came under regular repression, especially just before Montreal's
Expo 67The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, or Expo 67 as it was commonly known, was the first First Category exhibition approved by the Bureau of International Exhibition in the Americas. It was held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, from April 28 to October 29, 1967...
World's FairUniversal Exposition or Expo is the name given to various large public exhibitions held since the mid-19th century. They are the third largest event in the world in terms of economic and cultural impact after the FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games...
and the
Olympic GamesThe Olympic Games are a major international event of summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes compete in a wide variety of events. The Games are currently held every two years, with Summer and Winter Olympic Games alternating. Originally, the ancient Olympic Games were held in...
in 1976.
In the early 1980s, some bars opened along Saint-Catherine Street East, between Berri Street and
Papineau AvenuePapineau Avenue, is an important, and longest, north-south street in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Part of the street, between Henri Bourassa Boulevard and Quebec Autoroute 40, is the Montreal portion of Quebec Autoroute 19, commonly referred to as Autoroute Papineau...
, in the Centre-Sud area. Eventually, a new generation of gays also moved into the neighbourhood, both
anglophoneAnglophone may refer to:* An English-speaking person, group, or locality* English-speaking world* Anglosphere...
and
francophoneThe adjective francophone means French-speaking, typically as primary language, whether referring to individuals, groups, or places. Often, the word is used as a noun to describe a natively French-speaking person....
. Many came from other parts of Quebec. This was encouraged by the creation of a "Quartier Latin" (Latin Quarter, area of schools and students, like in
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
) dominated by the new campus of the
Université du Québec à MontréalThe Université du Québec à Montréal is one of four universities in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.-Basic facts:The UQAM is the largest constituent element of the Université du Québec , a public university system with other branches in Gatineau , Rimouski, Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec City, Chicoutimi, and...
.
The phrase "Le Village de l'Est" (the Eastern Village) was coined by one of the original bar owners from then-popular bar/club called
K.O.X. in an advertisement. After living in New York City, it was his intention to create a strong vibrant gay community similar to the East Village in New York. The phrase was used as a way to refer to this new community, referring to its eastern geographical location from downtown, as opposed to the traditional west end. Eventually the name shortened to simply "Le Village" by the gay community itself.
The success was solidified by the fact that it became both a gay residential and commercial district. But its success reflected the disappearance of gay businesses from the west of downtown.
By the 1990s, "The Village" had already started its expansion on Amherst Street, with the departure of many antique shops, more gay owned and operated businesses were emerging. At the same time, it had become well-established, and gained political recognition, acceptance by all LGBT persons, and by heterosexuals also.
It has continuously thrived, gaining popularity, the area beautified, the housing renovated. Almost all gay businesses in Montréal are now situated in this area.
Although many gays reside and are also very present in other parts of Montreal, the Gay Village remains the heart of, and service centre for, Montreal's
LGBTLGBT is an initialism referring collectively to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. In use since the 1990s, the term “LGBT” is an adaptation of the initialism “LGB” which itself started replacing the phrase “gay community” which many within LGBT communities felt did not represent...
community.
See also
- OutGames (OutGames #1 were held in 2006 ~ OutGames #2 in 2009 Copenhagen)
- Gay Village, Toronto
Church and Wellesley is an LGBT-oriented community located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is roughly bounded by Gerrard Street to the south, Yonge Street to the west, Charles Street to the north, and Jarvis Street to the east, with the core commercial strip located along Church Street from...
- Gay Village, Vancouver
Davie Village is a neighbourhood in the West End of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is the home of the city's gay subculture, and, as such, is often considered a gay village or "gaybourhood". It is centred around Davie Street and roughly includes the area between Burrard and Jervis streets...
External links
/
Popular guide to restaurants, bars and cafes in the Village.
Free gay info for globetrotting travellers by MontrealGayListings.Info (travel details)./
Listing of bars, restaurants, lodging and other businesses of the Village.
Listings for the local English gay & lesbian community from GAYroute.ca (free service)./
MontrealisGay.com -Your Guide to Gay Montreal../
queermontreal.INFO -- Easy-to-use, up-to-date directory for Montreal's Gay Village.
Official census of the Gay Village.
Directory listings for our local gay community and visiting travelers from MontrealGayListings.ca (100% free).
Listings for visiting English gay globetrotters from GAYroute.Info (directory & network).
Montreal Gay Village Pictures and Architecture.
Montreal Gay Guide Business Directory Repertoire