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Pierre Laporte
Pierre Laporte (French pronunciation: [pjɛʁ lapɔʁt]; 25 February 1921 – 17 October 1970) was a Canadian lawyer, journalist and politician. He was deputy premier of the province of Quebec when he was kidnapped and murdered by members of the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) during the October Crisis.
Pierre Laporte, grandson of the Liberal politician Alfred Leduc, was born in Montreal, Quebec, on 25 February 1921. He was a journalist with Le Devoir newspaper from 1945 to 1961, and was known for his crusading work against Quebec's then-Premier Maurice Duplessis. In 1950, he graduated from the Law School at the Université de Montreal, and was hired by Le Devoir shortly afterwards.
During his years in journalism, he published a number of series targeting the management of the Duplessis government. At the same time that he criticized the Union Nationale government in public, he wrote campaign pamphlets for the Union Nationale during elections. In 1954, Le Devoir ran a six-part series on problems during the construction of the Bersimis-1 generating station. Laporte alleged that the government had taken kickbacks from construction companies building the dam. In a speech, Duplessis called Laporte "a man without a heart, a pig, a snake and a slothy individual" whose journalism "pandered to the vilest instincts of yellow journalism and the most ignoble sentiments". Duplessis referred to Laporte as a writer for a "Bolshevik journal". In 1954, Laporte published a column in the left-wing newspaper Vrai where he wrote: "The Union Nationale is rotten. Those who don’t have eyes to see clearly...at least have a nose to smell. It’s a rotten fruit, whose stink wafts all the way to the provincial borders." In 1958, he was part of a team of Le Devoir reporters exposing the natural gas scandal, leading to the formation of the Salvas Commission, soon after the election of 1960. Laporte's biographer, Jean-Charles Panneton, stated:
Pierre Laporte was very courageous. He was a pioneer of investigative journalism in an era when investigative journalism was not practiced, when the media were very docile toward the government of Maurice Duplessis.
Laporte was very close to his wife, Françoise, whom he adored. One who knew him stated:
Pierre was the type of guy who went fishing with his wife. When he went travelling, he would always think how he could take his wife. He wouldn't go to a stag party. And he would introduce his wife with eyes that big — the way [a] young fellow would introduce his girl to relatives.
Peter Edwards, the crime correspondent of The Toronto Star, wrote in 1990 that Laporte was a "devoted family man".
After Duplessis's death, Laporte successfully ran for the Parti libéral du Québec for a seat in Chambly in the Quebec National Assembly and served in the government of Premier Jean Lesage. Laporte was a member of the Quebec Liberal Party, and considered to be a leading member of the party's left wing. Laporte was elected in a by-election in 1961. Laporte served as minister of municipal affairs from 1962 to 1966. In 1962, he was involved in a scandal which it emerged that he lobbied successfully for the Quebec government to rent construction equipment from a firm he owned, leading to charges of conflict of interest violations. Several Québécois newspapers printed cartoons that mockingly showed Laporte leading hundreds of bulldozers and tractors into Quebec City for the government to rent. In 1962, Laporte was the leading force behind a bill passed in the National Assembly that disqualified from holding office, J. Aldéo Léo Rémillard, the Union Nationale mayor of Ville Jacques-Cartier, on the account of his criminal record. Laporte also served as minister of cultural affairs from 1964 to 1966. In 1965, Laporte introduced the bill that led to the merger of several municipalities that created the city of Laval.
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Pierre Laporte
Pierre Laporte (French pronunciation: [pjɛʁ lapɔʁt]; 25 February 1921 – 17 October 1970) was a Canadian lawyer, journalist and politician. He was deputy premier of the province of Quebec when he was kidnapped and murdered by members of the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) during the October Crisis.
Pierre Laporte, grandson of the Liberal politician Alfred Leduc, was born in Montreal, Quebec, on 25 February 1921. He was a journalist with Le Devoir newspaper from 1945 to 1961, and was known for his crusading work against Quebec's then-Premier Maurice Duplessis. In 1950, he graduated from the Law School at the Université de Montreal, and was hired by Le Devoir shortly afterwards.
During his years in journalism, he published a number of series targeting the management of the Duplessis government. At the same time that he criticized the Union Nationale government in public, he wrote campaign pamphlets for the Union Nationale during elections. In 1954, Le Devoir ran a six-part series on problems during the construction of the Bersimis-1 generating station. Laporte alleged that the government had taken kickbacks from construction companies building the dam. In a speech, Duplessis called Laporte "a man without a heart, a pig, a snake and a slothy individual" whose journalism "pandered to the vilest instincts of yellow journalism and the most ignoble sentiments". Duplessis referred to Laporte as a writer for a "Bolshevik journal". In 1954, Laporte published a column in the left-wing newspaper Vrai where he wrote: "The Union Nationale is rotten. Those who don’t have eyes to see clearly...at least have a nose to smell. It’s a rotten fruit, whose stink wafts all the way to the provincial borders." In 1958, he was part of a team of Le Devoir reporters exposing the natural gas scandal, leading to the formation of the Salvas Commission, soon after the election of 1960. Laporte's biographer, Jean-Charles Panneton, stated:
Pierre Laporte was very courageous. He was a pioneer of investigative journalism in an era when investigative journalism was not practiced, when the media were very docile toward the government of Maurice Duplessis.
Laporte was very close to his wife, Françoise, whom he adored. One who knew him stated:
Pierre was the type of guy who went fishing with his wife. When he went travelling, he would always think how he could take his wife. He wouldn't go to a stag party. And he would introduce his wife with eyes that big — the way [a] young fellow would introduce his girl to relatives.
Peter Edwards, the crime correspondent of The Toronto Star, wrote in 1990 that Laporte was a "devoted family man".
After Duplessis's death, Laporte successfully ran for the Parti libéral du Québec for a seat in Chambly in the Quebec National Assembly and served in the government of Premier Jean Lesage. Laporte was a member of the Quebec Liberal Party, and considered to be a leading member of the party's left wing. Laporte was elected in a by-election in 1961. Laporte served as minister of municipal affairs from 1962 to 1966. In 1962, he was involved in a scandal which it emerged that he lobbied successfully for the Quebec government to rent construction equipment from a firm he owned, leading to charges of conflict of interest violations. Several Québécois newspapers printed cartoons that mockingly showed Laporte leading hundreds of bulldozers and tractors into Quebec City for the government to rent. In 1962, Laporte was the leading force behind a bill passed in the National Assembly that disqualified from holding office, J. Aldéo Léo Rémillard, the Union Nationale mayor of Ville Jacques-Cartier, on the account of his criminal record. Laporte also served as minister of cultural affairs from 1964 to 1966. In 1965, Laporte introduced the bill that led to the merger of several municipalities that created the city of Laval.