My views on the rivalry between Park Extention and Chomedey Laval

What Are You Still Doing There Ré?

Park Extension can be seen as one of Montreal's most ethnically diverse neighborhoods. It was, is, and most probably always will be an inexpensive burrow, which welcomes less fortunate new immigrants with little money.  This is their first stop - and step - towards the Canadian dream. 

Many Hellenic immigrants settled in the neighborhood during the 1960’s -1980's. At one time the area was 70% Greek. Almost all the businesses along Jean Talon Street between L'Acadie and Park Avenue were Greek-owned in 1977 (over 100). Today there are only about a dozen left. Back in the day, a Greek would walk up and down these roads feeling as if they were back home. Now, other than the few stores left, four Greek churches remain, catering to the predominantly older Greek residents who still live in the area. Other younger Greeks have since moved to suburbs such as Chomedey, Laval.

When looking back at the history of Greeks arriving in Quebec, Park Ex was their starting point. This was a direct migration. With practically nothing but lint in their pockets they searched for the cheapest place to live. They came with a plan, striving for success. 

Laval therefore houses the second and third generation of Greeks, so chances are they are more removed from their roots. This results in parents sending their children to regular English or French sector schools and progressively disregarding their original mother tongue. Most families just end up teaching their kids basic Greek solely to communicate with their grandparents.

In Montreal, parents won’t second-guess sending their child to Socrates, a Hellenic elementary school. In Laval on the other hand, even with a Socrates campus available, a Greek parent might lean towards an Anglophone or Francophone school. To make up for the lost language, the child might be sent to a Saturday Greek school such as Dimosteni. Another option would be taking a language class after school that is offered at Hillcrest Academy for example. This, in turn stresses the young Greek by having a bigger work load and spending more time in an academic environment. Who wants to spend more time in school at that age anyways?

Furthermore, Greeks who live in Park Ex are usually more traditional, being from the first generations of immigrants. This is why those who live in the suburbs tend to not be as fluent in Greek as those in Montreal. “In PX I was born into the community. All my friends were Greek. I took Greek dance class. I even wanted to continue Saturday Greek school after elementary…on my own!” confirms Angela Papadakis, a 21-year-old Park Ex-er.

Moreover, this attachment or detachment to culture has created a rivalry between the Greek Park Ex-ers and those from Chomedey. Because the Greeks from Chomedey are able to afford houses outside of Park Ex, their kids (present day teens) think they're better since they don't live in a “ghetto” or “hood”. They classify themselves as being higher status. “Here, we have apartment buildings, which are usually associated with poverty vs. the houses in Laval, that are newer and larger than ours”, explains a 20-year-old Park Ex “greekster” named George Viron. “It's like they think they’re the TMR of the Greeks and we're just those who never really made it!” he goes on ranting. 

In general, Greek Lavalers seem to have an aversion towards Montreal because it’s apparently dirty, loud, too busy, too crowded. However, when they go to school, work or clubbing, they all come down to the city. So obviously, Montrealers regard them as hypocrites. “They work, study and party in Montreal, but then go home across the bridge as if Montreal is only good to use, not live in!” expresses Viron.

BUT…even though there are presently more Greeks in Chomedey, Park Extention is still the "heart" of the Greeks in the Montreal metropolis. Chomedey Greeks aren’t too fond of this because they dislike the area. However, every time there’s a cultural event such as the 25^th of March parade referred to by the Greeks as the “parelasi”, they’re all forced, or basically have no choice but to come down to “the projects” to celebrate.

On the flip side, Park Ex is older than Chomedey. The Greeks migrated after prospering and new people of all races, mostly Bengali and Sri Lankan, are coming in and flooding the old “Greek Town”. This hasn’t happened in Chomedey -yet- since it is fairly new and –safe to say- dominated by Greeks. But down the road, in several years, others will start moving in also. This suburbia will ultimately become multicultural as well.

The ones that choose to stay behind are being criticized and asked: “What are you still doing there ré?” The Greeks who remain in Park Extention are seen as though they haven’t taken the next step. They’re those who haven’t “evolved” or progressed economically. The Park Ex-ers are regarded as “left behind” in the movement that the Greeks originally set out for. “I came to Canada with only five dollars in my pocket, and now look what I’ve done for myself; for my family!” exclaims a typical Greek grandfather residing in Laval, while pointing around the room (his newly renovated kitchen – with granite counters might I add).

            In reply to all the allegations, a 43-year-old Greek mother living in Chomedey asks, “Why would we want to be stuck back in Little India?”, extends her arms and continues “This was all part of the plan.”

So there you go! In conclusion, if you’re Greek and you still live in Park Ex, you haven’t exactly “made it” yet. To top it off, you shouldn’t be hostile towards Lavalers for executing the Greeks’ plan down the path towards the Canadian dream. 

Who is the better Greek? This has troubled the culture since its very appearance, making Greece a cluster of city states rather than a harmonious unified country. Never ask such a question for this can only mark the end of a generation of progress, prosperity, and hope of the dream itself. Let’s not go turning Park Ex and Chomedey into Athens and Sparta in the Peloponnesian wars!