Pierre Bourgault

Pierre Bourgault, journalist, politician, professor (born at East-Angus, Qué 23 Jan 1934; died at Montréal, 16 Jun 2003). He studied at the Séminaire de Sherbrooke and at the Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf, 1942-50. After a career as a radio and TV announcer and actor, he joined the Rassemblement pour l'indépendance nationale (RIN), becoming its president in 1964. A formidable orator, he used every avenue to promote and popularize the idea of political independence for Québec. The RIN won almost 6% of the vote in the 1966 elections and in 1968 agreed to merge with the PARTI QUÉBÉCOIS. For a while a member of the PQ's national executive, he was Jacques Parizeau's special communications adviser from November 1994 until January 1995, when he resigned because of the controversy over his statement that anglophones could create a "dangerous situation" by not voting for Québec sovereignty.

Bourgault became a professor of communications at the University of Québec at Montréal (UQAM) in 1976. He frequently appeared on television and in print, particularly as a contributor to Le Journal de Montréal, La Presse, and other newspapers, and wrote several books including Écrits polémiques (1988), Moi, je m'en souviens (1989) and Maintenant ou jamais (1990). He was a regular contributor to several radio shows on la Société Radio-Canada.

In 1997 Bourgault was awarded the Prix Georges-Émile Lapalme by the Québec government for his contributions to the French language.

Links to Other Sites
Face to Face: The Canadian Personalities Hall
"Face to Face" features outstanding Canadians whose ideas and contributions have transformed this country. Click on the photos in "Meet the Personalities" to see their biographies. From the Canadian Museum of Civilization.