Walter-Patrice O'Leary (3 July 1910 – 13 September 1989) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

, political

activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

and

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

ist.

Biography

O'Leary was born in

Berthierville Berthierville (; ) (also called Berthier-en-haut, and legally called Berthier before 1942) is a town located between Montreal and Trois-Rivières on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada. Berthierville is the seat of D'Aut ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

on 3 July 1910. He attended the ''Collège Saint-Joseph'' in Berthierville before travelling to

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

to study at a

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seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

Wavre Wavre (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Provinces of Belgium, province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium. Wavre is in the Dijle, Dyle valley. Most inhabitants sp ...

. Later, he attended the ''Institut supérieur de commerce Saint-Louis'' in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

, where he earned a

license A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...

in commercial sciences, and completed licenses in consular and maritime sciences at the ''Institut Saint-Ignace'' in

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

. O'Leary also studied at the

École Libre des Sciences Politiques Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and the

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public university, public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countri ...

(

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

), where he earned a license in philosophy and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

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. While in Europe, O'Leary was vice president of the ''Foyer international des étudiants catholiques (France)'' and a member of the ''Mission universitaire catholique française'' and the ''Jeunesse universitaire catholique''. In 1931, he founded the ''Action politique internationale des universitaires catholiques (Belgique)''. After returning from Europe, he became a journalist for ''L'Ordre''.

Activism

O'Leary was a

Quebec nationalist Quebec nationalism or Québécois nationalism is a feeling and a political doctrine that prioritizes cultural belonging to, the defence of the interests of, and the recognition of the political legitimacy of the Québécois nation. It has been ...

. With his brother Émile-Dostaler, he co-founded the Young Patriots of French Canada () and the Knights of the Round Table of Canada () in 1935, and the Cultural Union of Mexico–French Canada (), which was later renamed the Union of Latin America (), in 1939. Also in 1939, he founded the ''Bureau de liaison Paris-Montréal''. Circa 1947, O'Leary was secretary of the Goodwill Mission Canada–Mexico (). He served as president of the Quebec Popular Movement for Human Rights () from 1966 to 1967, when he founded Quebec International (). From 1968 to 1970, O'Leary was involved in efforts to disseminate and promote "La marche du Québec" (), a Québécois patriotic song (''see

Music of Quebec As a cosmopolitan province, Quebec is a home to various genres of music, ranging from folk to hip hop. Music has played an important role in Quebecer culture. In the 1920s and 1930s, singer/songwriter Madam Bolduc performed comedic songs in a ...

''). Subsequently, he was president of

The Plateau Le Plateau-Mont-Royal () is a borough (''arrondissement'') of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The borough takes its name from its location on a plateau, on the eastern side of Mount Royal and overlooking downtown Montreal, across its south ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

from 1974 to 1975. O'Leary served as secretary of the

Parti Québécois The Parti Québécois (PQ; , ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establishi ...

' committee on international politics from 1976 to 1976 and was a member of the

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society The Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society (, ) is an institution in the Canadian province of Quebec dedicated to the protection of Quebec francophone interests and to the promotion of Quebec sovereignism. It is known as the oldest patriotic association in ...

's committee on international relations. In the Quebec general election of 1966, O'Leary stood as a candidate for the

Rassemblement pour l'Indépendance Nationale The Rassemblement pour l'Indépendance Nationale (; RIN; ) was a political organization dedicated to the promotion of Quebec national Quebec sovereignty movement, independence from Canada. Torn during its existence between different ideological t ...

in the

Notre-Dame-de-Grâce Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (, , ), commonly known as NDG, is a residential neighbourhood of Montreal in the city's West End, with a population of 166,520 (2016). An independent municipality until annexed by the City of Montreal in 1910, NDG is today o ...

riding. He placed fourth in the contest with 949 votes, losing to Quebec Liberal

Eric Kierans Eric William Kierans (2 February 1914 – 10 May 2004) was a Canadians, Canadian economist and politician. Early life Eric Kierans was born on 2 February 1914, in Montreal to Irish Canadians, Irish immigrant parents. He grew up in a working- ...

. O'Leary published articles in various French-language magazines and newspapers, including ''L'Indépendance'', ''L'Ordre'', and ''L'Unité''.

Personal life

O'Leary was born to Emile O'Leary and Fébronie Dostaler and had two sisters—Marguerite and Alice—and a brother, Émile-Dostaler. He married Gratia Parent on 23 January 1960, at the age of 49. He fathered two children: Christian and Pascal.

Death

O'Leary died on 13 September 1989 in

, aged 79.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oleary, Walter-Patrice Activists from Montreal Journalists from Montreal Trade unionists from Quebec National Autonomous University of Mexico alumni People from Lanaudière 1910 births 1989 deaths