Bill C-53 corrects historical oversight

EDMONTON, AB, Feb. 27, 2024 /CNW/ - The federal legislation before Parliament that would recognize Métis governing rights in Alberta, Ontario, and Saskatchewan is a long-delayed opportunity to correct generations of government neglect, according to Métis lawyer Jason Madden in a special two-part segment of The True Canadians podcast.

Madden says passage of Bill C-53, which has advanced to third reading in the House of Commons, will rescue the Métis from the legal "lacuna," or gap, in which they have been trapped for generations. "We are implementing Métis self-government in real-time … through the passage of Bill C-53," says Madden, who has argued at the Supreme Court of Canada that the Métis should be treated on the same footing as other Indigenous peoples.

The two-part segment represents episodes three and four of the podcast, which is based on the book The True Canadians and hosted by David Wylynko, who co-wrote the book with Métis writer Patricia Russell.

In the third episode, Madden describes self-government agreements struck by the Métis and Canada in recent years, and the details of Bill C-53. In the fourth episode, released today, Madden retraces Métis political history from the 1800s all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada's 2003 decision in the Powley case. The Court ruled that Steve Powley and his son Roddy were exercising their Métis rights in 1993 when they were charged with illegal hunting, rights that are protected in section 35 of the Constitution Act of 1982.

In the podcast, Madden stresses that the current fight for recognition and self-government aligns with the same objectives of famous Métis leader Louis Riel, who led two resistances in the 19th century in an attempt to secure rights for his people.

"It's a really exciting time for the Métis Nation because we're getting closer and closer to that vision that Riel has always had — and our people have always had — of knowing that no one can take care of our people better than ourselves and that we can govern ourselves and we don't need anyone's permission to do that," Madden says. "All we need is a government on the other side of the table respecting the true history of Canada and finally dealing with us on a nation-to-nation, government-to-government basis."

The podcast is available on all major podcasting platforms and at thetruecanadians.com/podcast.

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SOURCE West Hawk Associates Inc.

Media contact: Patricia Russell, 867-446-3446