With the election a year away, calls for a more diverse Montreal city council grow

Saint-Laurent borough Mayor Alan DeSousa has been in municipal politics for more than three decades, watching as the number of visible minorities in Montreal climbs to 34 per cent in a city still run by a largely homogenous council.

He isone of only seven elected officials who isn't white, and among those who wants to see a more diverse range of voices at city hall to better represent the community.

"By including people from all walks of life as candidates, and ultimately as councillors and mayors, we offer ourselves the best chance to tap into the best talent that we have, the best expertise and the best perspectives that we have in running our communities," said DeSousa.

DeSousawas born in Pakistan and immigrated to Canada at age 13. He has served on both sides of the aisle over the years, and now stands with the official opposition, Ensemble Montral.

Since the days of former Mayor Denis Coderre, Ensemble has had a history of running a diverse slate of candidates, with several that have been elected, DeSousa said.

"Other parties have quite a bit of catching up to do," he said.

The current party in power,Projet Montral, has been heavily criticized for thelack of diversity among its elected representatives.

"There has to be a political will to do this," DeSousasaid.

"Clearly it's not an issue of qualified candidates not being around, but there has to be that willingness to put their money where their mouth is."

Projet Montralworksto diversify slate

Over the weekend, Mayor Valrie Plante released a statement, marking the start of the election year with a vow to bring more diversity to council.

"We want to make sure that people of different backgrounds feel comfortable, feel welcome," said Plante, the first woman to be elected mayor of Montreal.

"So of course we do outreach. What we want to do is mentorship, offer tools to better understand how the party works."

Projet's new president, Guedwig Bernier, is leading the charge.

"In 2017, we succeeded in achieving parity," said Bernier. "In 2021, we must succeed in that of diversity."

He said he would like to see as many as 30 elected representatives of diverse backgrounds, in Montreal and in demerged municipalities.

"It's not just visible minorities. You need a diversity of talents and backgrounds too," said Bernier.

"Does the party have to change? I think so. Expectations are now higher."

Rotrandlaunches 3rd push for more diverse council

Just as he first did in 2013 and again in 2016, Snowdon Councillor Marvin Rotrand has put forward a motion that asks parties to commit to running candidates that better represent the population.

"We have diverse communities and these communities are just not reflected in decision-making," he said. "It's important to reflect their experiences."

Other Canadian cities are electing more visible minorities, he said, but Montreal is lagging behind.

"It's not enough to name visible minority candidates at the last moment," he said.

"Some people say there's a cynical practice of filling slates in districts that aren't winnable with visible minorities at the last moment simply to puff up the numbers."

To succeed, he said, candidates need support from the beginning to the end of the campaign. However, no matter how much support a candidate has in Snowdon, they likely stand little chance against Rotrand if he runs in 2021.

Though he has talked about retiring, the 69-year-old said he is currently weighing time with his new grandchild against an 11th term in office.

Long-time councillors should step aside: Montgomery

Cte-Des-NeigesNotre-Dame-De-Grce Mayor Sue Montgomery said people like Rotrand white men who have held their seats for decades should step aside and support a visible minority candidate instead.

Montgomery formed her own party in the borough after being expelled from Projet. She sees her independence as an opportunity to bring new voices to the traditionally all-white borough council.

"Not only diverse candidates, but I want people who are in it for the citizens, who are going to run and work for the citizens and do the best for the borough," she said. "That's why I ran."

Rotrand could use his vast networks of contacts to get a visible minority into the Snowdon seat, she said.

When asked about this, Rotrand, an independent, said the two major parties control virtually every council seat and the real solution is not for long-time councillors to step aside.

"The solution is for the political parties to say, 'You know something, visible minorities,persons of First Nations, other minorities are woefully underrepresented and we can do better,'" he said.

"That's what needs to happen."

Advocate says city staff lacks diversity as well

Fo Niemi, director of the Center for Research-Action on Race Relations, is one of several community leaders backing Rotrand's motion which is up for debate later this month.

He said racial and ethnic diversity is now an unconditional requirement for any public institution because "it's a fact of life."

• Montreal's poorest and most racially diverse neighbourhoods hit hardest by COVID-19, data analysis shows

Debate and the topics of debate are limited by the lack of diversity on council, he said. And that lack of diversity is echoed by city staff, which also fails to represent the population, he said.

"People bring with them their lived experience their personal and community knowledge to an issue," Niemi said.

"This is why decisions are being made by city hall that don't really respond to or reflect the needs or demands of the electorate."