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| Tragically Hip frontman Gord Downie passed away on Tuesday. |
Montreal, QC
It seems as though an entire country shed a tear when Canada learned of the passing of Gord Downie, lead singer of the iconic band The Tragically Hip. That is, all but one notable exception - the city of Montreal.
While Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held a tearful press conference in Ottawa the day after Downie died of brain cancer, Mayor Denis Coderre came out with a statement of his own on Thursday evening.
"While Mr. Downie was a celebrated poet and musician throughout the rest of Canada and even parts of Quebec, I cannot in good conscious mourn his passing on behalf of my constituents."
When pressed as to why he would not pay his respects to Downie's family, the mayor explained: "Gord Downie was a fervent Boston Bruins fan. He even wore a retro Bruins jersey in the video Courage (For Hugh MacLennan) and also references Bobby Orr in Fireworks. The Canadiens are Montreal's team, and Mr. Downie should have respected that."
Outrage towards Mayor Coderre as well as the city of Montreal has followed the comments, with several Kingston residents burning Canadiens jerseys.
From Our Montreal Bureau