A municipal politician apologized Thursday morning for a sexist comment directed at one of his colleagues, CJAD 800 Car Show host Lisa Christensen.
At a public meeting of the city's finance and administration commission at City Hall, Richard Guay, an Ensemble Montréal borough councillor in the RDP-Pointe-aux-Trembles borough, remarked that Christensen, a Projet Montreal borough councillor representing the same borough, had impressive technical knowledge — for a woman.
Christensen, a longtime mechanic who has hosted CJAD 800's Car Show on Saturday mornings for more than two decades, didn't respond to the backhanded compliment, though she was seen rolling her eyes.
The meeting was called to review the STM's latest budget. Christensen had asked a highly technical question about an issue affecting the STM's bus fleet, to which Guay responded, "I'm impressed by your knowledge...for a woman who's a mechanic."
Another female councillor, Laurence Lavigne-Lalonde, jumped on those comments soon after, saying they were out of place, and "had no place in this chamber".
Several Twitter users also made hay of the comments before Guay issued his apology, in public, toward the end of the morning.
"I have the greatest respect for her," Guay told the meeting. "She's a mechanic, I'm a mechanic, so we talk a lot together."
He later explained the comments has less to do with his surprise at her technical abilities, but rather, that of the public at large.
"Nonetheless, my comments were awkward, and I have apologized to Ms. Christensen and Ms. Lavigne-Lalonde."