Lise Payette, Quebec journalist and politician, dead at 87

Lise Payette,a celebratedjournalist, feminist, writer and Quebec cabinet ministerviewed as a trailblazer for women in Quebec politics, has died.She was 87.

Payettedied peacefully Wednesday evening at her home, surrounded by friends and family, according to a news release sent by her publicist.

Born in the Montreal neighbourhood of Verdunin 1931,Payettebegan a career in broadcasting with Radio-Canada, hosting a morning radio program calledPlace aux Femmesand an evening talk show calledAppelez-moi Lise.

She joined the Parti Qubcois and was elected in 1976 and appointed toRenLvesque'sfirst cabinet. Payette wasminister of consumer affairs, co-operatives and financial institutions. She was also the province's firstminister responsible for the status of women.

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"I told myself it was the time for me to join politics to open doors," she toldRadio-Canada in an interview later in her life.

"I have a knack for that, opening doors, and I make sure that once they've been opened they can never again be closed."

She was also instrumental in establishingof theSAAQ, Quebec's automobile insurance program, and its no-fault policy,ensuring that any victim of a car accident is entitled to compensation, regardless of who caused the accident.

Payette 'set the stage for generations of women'

News of her death Thursday prompted an outpouring of tributes from politicians across the political spectrum.

PQ LeaderJean-Franois Lise saidPayette "set the stage for generations of women seeking freedom and equality."

Liberal Leader Philippe Couillardechoed those comments, saying she was instrumental in advancing the rights of women.

Couillard recalled watchingAppelez-moiLisewhen he was young and said the show was "a significant moment on Quebec television screens."

Radio-Canada culturecolumnist Michel Coulombesaid Payettedisplayed hersharp wit andlively humour on the program. He called her a "genius interviewer."

QubecSolidaire co-spokespersonManon Masssaid Payette"was a builder, who was necessarily stubborn."

"All her life, she had the same guiding principle," former Quebec Liberal minister Liza Frullatold Radio-Canada Wednesday. "That was to defend and fight for women's rights and the evolution [of their place in society]."

Frulla said onPlace aux femmes, which aired from 1965 to 1970, Payette addressed issues that were taboos atthe time, including divorce, domestic violence, unwanted pregnancy and the societal barriers women faced.

That "guiding principle" translated into Payette'sfeminist politics.She created Quebec'sSecrtariat la Condition fminine, and she helped draft policies to improve daycare services in the province and to offer women longer maternity leaves.

'Je me souviens' was hers

Sovereignty was another cause which helped definePayette.

In a 2014 interview withMaclean's, Payette said she started to reject her identity as a Canadian in 1970, when then-prime minister Pierre Trudeau invoked the War Measures Act during the October Crisis.

Payette is credited with coming up with the slogan immortalized onQuebec licence plates, Je me souviens(I remember),which replacedLa Belle Province.

However, her strong convictions also got her in trouble and may even have contributed to the loss of the 1980 referendum.

Campaigning for the"Yes" side, Payette dismissed Madeleine Guay, the wife of Quebec Liberal Leader Claude Ryan,as an "Yvette" alluding to the docile young girl featured in old Quebec textbooks.

The "Yvette" comment backfired, and the "No" campaign seized on the controversy, organizing a federalist womens' rally in Montreal that is widely seen as turning the tide for the "No" side at a critical juncture.

Quebec women rally against separation

45 years ago

Duration 2:05

The "Yvettes" stage a massive rally for the No side.

Payetteapologized, and sheleft politics in 1981after the "Yes" sidelost the referendum. She became a prolific writer of television series, namelythe popular Quebec soap operaDes dames de cur.

• ARCHIVES|Quebec women rally against separation

Support for the 'charter of values'

More than 30 years later, Payetteresurfaced to defend former PQ premierPauline Marois'sproposed Charter of Quebec Values, which would have forbiddenpublic servants from wearing religious garb at work.

The proposed charter, seen as targeting Muslim women,was widely criticized and never saw the light of day.

Payetteinvitedcontroversy again in 2016, defendingher longtime friend, the late film director Claude Jutra,when allegations that he had sexually abused children came to light years after his death.

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Just last year, Payetteadmitted having triedto dissuade Quebec media personalityLa Clermont-Dion, 27, from filing a police complaint alleging sexual assault against journalist Michel Venne.

'I wouldn't have gone into politics' without her: Pauline Marois

Former PQ premier Pauline Maroiscredits Payettewith setting her on her own career path.

"She changed my life," Maroistold Radio-Canada'sPremire heure.

Maroiswas Payette'schief of staff underthe Ren Lvesqueadministration.

"I wouldn't have gone into politics if I hadn't worked at her side," Marois said."She showed me the difficult side of things, but at the time, the satisfaction that comes when you change people's lives for the better."

Payette is survived by her three children, Dominique, Sylvie and Daniel, hergrandchildren and a great-grandchild.

with files from Radio-Canada