Ontario chiefs laud Sask. Métis leaders for leaving national organization over identity dispute

Ontario First Nations leaders are applauding the Métis Nation-Saskatchewan (MN-S) for taking a stand against its Ontario affiliate, and say they will continue their battle against the recognition of Métis communities they say never existed.

MN-S withdrew from the Métis National Council last week citing its concerns the Métis Nation of Ontario (MNO) "continues to represent significant numbers of people who are not Métis."

Ontario chiefs began protesting the issue last year after the federal government signed a self-government agreement recognizing MNO as an Indigenous government.

The Chiefs of Ontario umbrella organization allied with the Manitoba Métis Federation in opposition to Bill C-53, the proposed federal legislation to ratify the self-government deal.

Scott McLeod, who acted as the Ontario chiefs' spokesman on this over the last year, said "the battle is far from over."

"Most of the successes and recognition of our work in uncovering this fraudulent organization is on the Indigenous side," said McLeod, who is Lake Huron regional chief for the Anishinabek Nation advocacy organization and former chief of Nipissing First Nation.

"We still have lots of work to do on the provincial and federal government side, who are the ones that are actually giving them the false recognition."

Ontario chiefs say Saskatchewan's split is a smart and difficult but important decision.

"The MNO's claims have not stood up to scrutiny and we're now seeing the repercussions," said Ontario Regional Chief Abram Benedict in a statement. 

The MNO denies allegations of Indigenous identity fraud, citing the Supreme Court of Canada's landmark 2003 Powley ruling that affirms the existence of a historic, rights-holding Métis community in and around Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.

In a statement last week, MNO called the Saskatchewan group's decision disappointing and perplexing, rejecting the "categorically false" comment about many of its members being non-Métis.

"Last year, the MNO concluded a six-year registry review process that involved the removal of nearly 6,000 individuals with incomplete files. Today, 100 per cent of the MNO's citizens are verified Métis rights holders," the statement said.

6 communities questioned

At the heart of the controversy are six communities in Ontario that MNO and the Ontario government recognized as historic in 2017, but whose legitimacy First Nations challenge.

Shelly Moore-Frappier, ogimaa (chief) of Temagami First Nation in northeastern Ontario, said First Nations are still waiting for the province to explain the process used to validate these communities.

She called Saskatchewan's withdrawal "definitely a game changer" that "strengthens everything that we've been already saying," particularly to provincial and federal leaders.

"I don't know what else they need to rethink some of the decisions that they've made and to move forward in a way that is honouring reconciliation. Because really this is about — this is colonization 2.0," she said.

Bill C-53 was already moving slowly through Parliament but stalled in the spring after MN-S pulled support for it.

Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Gary Anandasangaree said last week that Ottawa was still in discussions about the bill but wouldn't move forward without consent from all parties.

The Métis National Council was formed in 1983 by Métis associations in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta to advocate for Métis rights. Ontario and British Columbia joined later.

The Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF) broke from the council in 2021, citing the "eastern invasion" from Ontario. Now with Saskatchewan gone, the council counts just one of its three founders as a member, raising questions about its future.

Robyn Lawson, a Red River Métis citizen who lives in Vancouver, said she believes the withdrawal of the Saskatchewan Métis deals a major blow to MNO's credibility.

Lawson, a close observer of Métis politics who describes herself as a concerned grassroots citizen, said she was happy and relieved to see the significant shift but she expressed mixed feelings about the 41-year-old national organization's splintering.

"I feel a deep sense of regret and disappointment as to where this organization could have brought the Métis Nation. That storied history is certainly significant and meaningful, and it is a shame that it went the way it did," she said.

"On the other hand, it's a reaffirmation that the Red River Métis citizens know who we are, and we are more than willing to stand up for it."

Lawson said after the national council's B.C. affiliate sided with MNO in 2021, she moved to the MMF. Nor was she alone, she added.

She said she believes Saskatchewan Métis leaders were under pressure from grassroots citizens to cut ties with MNO and predicts Alberta Métis leaders could soon feel the heat from their members, too.