If Montrealers revel in a reputation for being a city of "differences," popular Quebec entertainer Luck Mervil remembers his arrival from Haiti at the ...

... age of 4, when difference came in two forms: winter and racism....That was the 1970s, when it was tough to find an ethnic face in the fevers of Quebec nationalism. Today, celebrating differences - including the primordial Quebec "difference" - is much hipper and more fun than being undyingly pure laine (which many folks have figured out is demographically impossible). The multiculturalism so evident in the programming at Les FrancoFolies - the annual celebration of French-language music (where Mervil gives a free show) - reflects big changes in Quebec society. As well as Hydro-Quebec's free series devoted to multicultural music, this year's edition features world-music stars like Tiken Jah Fakoly, Lokua Kanza and the Algerian veteran crooner Enrico Macias. Mervil is one of Quebec's most visible multicultural faces, last year becoming the first black to be named a Patriot of the Year by the Societe St. Jean Baptiste.

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