West Quebec bridge will honour province's 1st black MNA
Bridge on Highway 50 will be named after Jean Alfred, province says
The Quebec government will name a bridge on Highway 50 in the Outaouais after Jean Alfred, the first black member of the province's national assembly.
The Commission de toponymie, which manages the names of places in Quebec, announced that the bridge over the Petite Nation River connecting the municipality of Plaisance, Que., and the township of Lochaber, Que., will now be known as the Pont Jean-Alfred.
The decision was announced to mark Black History Month.
Represented Papineau riding
Alfred served as a Parti Québécois MNA for the riding of Papineau in western Quebec from 1976 until 1981. During that tenure, he played an important role in the development and construction of the Gatineau hospital.
In 1981 and 1989, Alfred ran for office in the neighbouring riding of Chapleau, where he was defeated both times by Liberal John Kehoe.
In a French-language press release, Quebec Minister of Culture Nathalie Roy said that Alfred devoted part of his life to "building bridges between Québécois and the Haitian community here."
A teacher of Haitian origin, Alfred was also a city councillor in Gatineau, Que., before entering provincial politics.
He died in July 2015.
With files from Radio-Canada