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Blue Metropolis (also known as Blue Met) is an international literary festival held annually in Montreal. Founded in 1999 by Montreal writer Linda Leith, it is considered the world's first multilingual literary festival.[1] In early 2011, Leith departed, and a new president and a new director of programming were hired.
The festival is put on by Blue Metropolis Foundation, a nonprofit organization established in 1997 that offers educational and social programs.
In 1996, three Montreal writers and members of the Writer's Union of Canada (Linda Leith, Ann Charney, and Mary Soderstrom) organized the literary event 'Write pour écrire' in partnership with the Union des écrivaines et des écrivains québécois (UNEQ).[citation needed]
In 1997, Leith established Blue Metropolis Foundation as a foundation 'created by writers and readers for writers and readers'.[citation needed]
The first Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival took place April 19 to 23, 1997.[2] Its programming, which took place in French and English, included the first Blue Metropolis Translation Slam as well as literacy/community writing activities, readings, on-stage interviews, and panel discussions.[citation needed]
After the event, the foundation expanded by organizing educational programs for young people from primary school to cégep levels.[3]
The name 'Blue Metropolis' was partially inspired by the philosophical essay 'On Being Blue', in which the American writer William H. Gass investigates the many different and contradictory connotations of the word 'blue'.[4]
In 2017, the festival added 'Violet Metropolis, an LGBTQ-themed stream, in conjunction with the city's existing Violet Hour reading series.[5] In 2018, the festival created the Blue Metropolis Violet Prize to honor Canadian LGBTQ writers.[6]
The festival presents a number of annual awards.
In 2013, the festival announced a new prize, the Premio Metropolis Azul. The prize is awarded to works which explore some aspect of Hispanophone culture or history and given annually to an author from any country or region for a work of fiction written in Spanish, English, or French. The prize is sponsored by Ginny Stikeman.
The Blue Metropolis First Peoples Prize is awarded to a North American Indigenous writer for a work in any genre.
The Blue Metropolis Words to Change Prize is awarded to a writer whose work connects linguistic, religious, ethnic or other communities.
In 2016 the festival announced a new prize in association with the Conseil des arts de Montréal. The work is awarded to a first or second generation migrant to Quebec, residing in Montreal, from a multi-cultural community, written in French or English, for a first publication in Quebec.
The Blue Metropolis Violet Prize, created in 2018, honors an established LGBTQ writer for their body of work.
The festival previously awarded the Blue Metropolis Al Majidi Ibn Dhaher Arab Literary Prize. Named after the 17th-century poet al-Majidi ibn Dhaher, the prize was initiated in 2007 and is worth CAD $5,000. The prize was sponsored by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage. Dr Issa J Boullata served as consultant for the prize and the jury was composed of an international roster of poets, novelists, and literary professionals. The prize is currently on hiatus.
