The Métis and Anishinaabe communities of Sault Ste. Marie have been long-time allies. Perhaps the most notable example of allyship between the two political groups occurred both during and after the Mica Bay Incident—one of the most important moments in the history of Crown-Indigenous relations in the Upper Great Lakes. Following their collective action at Mica Bay alongside their Métis allies, the Anishinaabek Chiefs Shingwaukonse-ibun and Nebainagoching-ibun advocated f

In 1850, the Métis in Sault Ste. Marie petitioned the government seeking recognition and protections for their traditional River Lot homes along the St. Mary’s River that formed the heart of their distinct Métis way of life grounded in the region’s abundant lands and waters. Signed by members of many well-known Métis families—including the Biron, Boissonneau, Cadotte, Lesage, Nolin, Sayer, and Labatte families—the 1850 Sault Ste. Marie Métis Petition came in response to Treat

In 1902, as Canada prepared to negotiate Treaty 9 in the James Bay region, Indian Commissioner J.A. McKenna drew the government’s...

In 2004, Deputy Grand Chief of the Anishinabek Nation, Nelson Toulouse attended the MNO’s Annual General Assembly in Thunder Bay to share...

On July 7, 2004, the Métis Nation of Ontario (MNO) and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources made history together by signing the first-ever negotiated agreement recognizing Métis harvesting rights anywhere in the Métis homeland. Known as the “Four Points Agreement,” the interim Harvesting Agreement emerged less than a year after the Supreme Court of Canada’s historic decision in R. v. Powley (2003). The Supreme Court’s unanimous Powley ruling made it clear: historic Mé

In the late 1830s, the Crown began excluding “Halfbreeds” from annual present-giving—a longstanding pre-treaty practice used to maintain diplomatic relationships with First Nation and Métis in the Upper Great Lakes. This policy change was a significant concern for Métis in the Upper Great Lakes, who by this time had developed distinct communities with their own unique identity, governance, and way of life separate and apart from their First Nations neighbours. As noted by I