Federal census district data for 1974 are used to produce a global index showing the relative degree to which each of the census districts of the island of Montreal is disadvantaged. The internal dynamics and characteristics peculiar to the different local communities within are not specified and necessitate additional data sources such as health, social affairs, leisure, and others for their study. The research is undertaken with the aim of insuring a more rational and equitable distribution of educational funds that will take into account the social inequalities which exist between different social groups. Socioeconomic and cultural indicators are chosen that reveal the disparities between social and cultural communities and which an institution like the school should be aware of before alloting their budgets or choosing particular intervention strategies. The question of the poverty problem which enabled the identification of certain variables which relate to the problem of social inequalities in society and for which information is available is briefly but comprehensively pin pointed. Sixty-five census districts are presented in tabular form, containing the district members, the corresponding global index value, the geographical boundaries of each district, and the names of the cities in which the disadvantaged areas are located. (Author/AM)