Differentiated access to public space: A comparative analysis of two public places in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Montreal
Accessibility to public space is not always the same for everyone. It is rather modulated according to gender, ethnicity and/or social class. This article sheds light on the intersectional social relations that factor into the accessibility of public spaces, more specifically in the context of the transformation of Montreal’s central neighbourhoods. It proposes a comparative case study of Place Gennevilliers-Laliberté and Place Simon-Valois, both located in the heart of the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve neighbourhood. Since the 2000s, this neighbourhood has not only undergone major urban redevelopment but also the gentrification and ethnic diversification of its population, which comes with challenges regarding the ways in which people coexist. Our data collected through direct observations and short questionnaires show that the ways in which different groups interact and share space and time on these two public squares occurs relatively peacefully. While the detailed analysis of the data reveals practices of space differentiated by gender and ethnicity, a certain “civil inattention” in the public space hides another reality. Some people choose to appropriate the peripheral space by adopting a strategy of avoiding one or another of the places studied.