Statement from the Métis Nation of Ontario - Responding to First Nation Attacks on Ontario Métis and Métis Denialism

OTTAWA, ON , June 19, 2023 /CNW/ - Métis denialism needs to stop. It was distasteful and violent in the 1990s when Premier Mike Harris and his Ministers attacked the very existence of Ontario Métis and our rights. It is distasteful and lateral violence when First Nation leaders do the same in 2023.

Over 30 years ago, the Métis Nation of Ontario (MNO) fought Ontario's denialism of Métis history, existence, and rights in the courts for over a decade. We won at every level of court in Ontario as well as the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. Powley in 2003.

In 2004, following our legal victory, the MNO and Chiefs of Ontario (COO) signed a protocol agreement to "affirm mutual respect, recognition and support for the respective rights, interests and aspirations of First Nations and the Métis Nation within Ontario." That same year, the MNO and COO jointly lobbied the government for Métis and First Nations rights. On that day, an Ontario MPP stated in the Legislature:

"Ontario Regional Chief Fox and [MNO President] Belcourt said that they expect the government to live up to its commitment to the constitutionally recognized aboriginal people in Ontario -- the First Nations and the Metis Nation."

During this same period, the MNO and Anishinabek Nation participated in a series of ceremonies, including a sacred pipe ceremony. We believe ceremony is sacred, however, when less forward-looking Chiefs were subsequently elected, all relations with the MNO were cut off. For certain First Nation Chiefs to now claim they 'don't know us', 'we do not exist,' and that 'we don't have rights,' is plainly false. These new political positions are the very definition of revisionist history and lateral violence.

To now suggest there is only one small Métis community in all of Ontario, with its many fur trade routes and waterways, denies the facts of history. The credible and overwhelmingly historic and genealogical research that supports Métis claims is available for all to see. This is why both Ontario and Canada stand behind the recognition of the MNO. 

Moreover, absolutely nothing has been done behind closed doors. All our agreements with the government have been publicly announced and posted on our website. We have negotiated with the Crown to implement the Powley case while First Nations have refused to meet. Our results of formal self-government negotiations with Canada—that have spanned over 7 years—are all public.

The Métis self-government legislation about to be introduced into Parliament is only about our internal functions. It is about recognizing Métis citizenship, Métis elections, Métis governance operations, and Métis child and family services. It does not deal with land, harvesting, or any land-related rights. It does not impact the rights of First Nations in any way. Just last year, similar legislation passed related to the Anishinabek Nation without any consultation with others or dispute; yet these same First Nations now try to stop Métis reconciliation. 

Métis rights are not derivative to First Nations. Nor do Métis require First Nations' consent to exist or have rights. Reconciliation is not a hierarchy or 'zero-sum game' where a 'win' for one Indigenous people holds back others. Real reconciliation demands all Indigenous peoples—Métis, First Nation, and Inuit—be treated as equals and with respect. The MNO will continue to conduct itself on this basis.  

Quote: 

"Métis and First Nations have always been stronger when we work together, as we have for more than 200 years. It is only very recently that politics have gotten in the way of our shared progress. The MNO's door will always be open for respectful dialogue with Ontario First Nations. To young Métis hurt by this rhetoric: our Métis communities are resilient, and we aren't going anywhere. Hold your head up high." – Margaret Froh, President of the Métis Nation of Ontario

Additional Information:
The Métis were expressly included as one of the three "aboriginal peoples of Canada" in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. There is no hierarchy of section 35 rights. We are a distinct Indigenous people with constitutionally protected rights. In 2003, the Supreme Court affirmed in R. v. Powley that Métis rights co-exist where First Nations may have treaty rights.

Ontario Métis communities exist, are well-documented, have always been known, and now they are formally recognized. In what is now Ontario, distinct Métis communities emerged along the fur trade and waterway routes. In 1849/50, Métis joined with the Anishinaabe as a part of the Mica Bay Uprising to bring about the negotiations of the Robinson Huron and Superior treaties. The historic record shows our people—called "Halfbreeds"—petitioned the Crown for recognition at Penetanguishene, Sault Ste. Marie, Nipigon, Moose Factory, and more locations, separate from First Nations. And the "Halfbreeds of Rainy Lake and River" collectively adhered to Treaty 3 in 1875. This is just a small glimpse of Métis history in Ontario.

In 1990, the Supreme Court of Canada's decision in R. v. Sparrow recognized First Nation rights. After that, every First Nation in Canada did not need to go to the courts to also prove their Section 35 rights. Governments negotiated. Likewise, after R. v. Powley, the MNO negotiated with Ontario to reach an interim Métis harvesting agreement in 2004, which required further research on other Métis communities in Ontario to confirm they met the criteria set out by the Supreme Court. After a decade of work, Ontario and the MNO announced the recognition of six other historic Métis communities (in addition to the Sault Ste. Marie Métis community) in August 2017. Two provincial governments—Liberal and Conservative—have stood by that announcement.  

In the same vein, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples and Canada have recognized the MNO and Ontario Métis communities.  The MNO will not go back to "Métis denialism" in this province. 

Media contact:
Victoria Belton
Senior Consultant, Media Profile
416-997-5179
[email protected] 

SOURCE Métis Nation of Ontario