1. Objectifs

Intentions :
«In this paper I argue that we can indeed talk about a Montréal School if we accept a soft version of the ‘school’ concept. I will show that a particular kind of urban knowledge has been developed as a reflection of Montréal itself, a city of ‘in-betweens’. […] I will also underline the fact that the Montréal School is the product of continuous discussion between social researchers and practitioners (policymakers as well as grass-roots organizations’ workers), who have been engaged in dialogue about the promises and perils of social mix and inter-ethnic cohabitation.» (p. 29)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
Données documentaires diverses

Type de traitement des données :
Réflexion critique

3. Résumé

L’auteure aborde de nombreuses études en accordant une importance particulière à l’intégration de familles immigrantes dans différents contextes montréalais, mais fait aussi le pont avec les politiques publiques des trois dernières décennies à l’égard de ces nouveaux arrivants. C’est en ce sens qu’elle écrit «[t]he research on inter-ethnic cohabitation in HLMs [Habitations à loyer modique] showed a considerable social distance between immigrant and non-immigrant families (Dansereau et Séguin, 2005). Recent immigrants were often isolated, and tensions revolved around issues such as noise, smells, cleanliness and garbage disposal. More importantly, the arrival en masse of immigrant families with many children – especially teenagers – transformed the demographic profile of public housing estates, upsetting the balance that the mainly White francophone tenants had been used to, in which older women usually took up leadership positions on various tenants’ association committees. [I]t became necessary to better welcome the newcomers and to create ties between new and established tenants. The Living with Social Mix project […] aimed to better inform the new immigrant families about their rights and responsibilities as HLM tenants, to help immigrants learn French […], and to build bridges with neighbourhood resources.» (p. 33)