“Métis Nation of Ontario Recognized”

In November 1993, the Métis Nation Executive of the Métis National Council formally recognized the Métis Nation of Ontario as the “representative organization of the Métis people in Ontario.”

This recognition came just weeks after the MNO’s founding was announced on October 20, 1993—coincidentally, the same week that Métis harvesters Steve and Roddy Powley were charged with illegally hunting a moose in Sault Ste. Marie. A decade later, these events ultimately led to the Métis Nation’s landmark Métis rights victory at the Supreme Court of Canada. 

In a press release issued on November 8, 1993, then-Métis National Council President Gerald Morin celebrated the MNO’s achievement on behalf of the Métis Nation, saying:

“Forming an organization for Métis people exclusively in Ontario is an exciting development… They will now have the means to stand on their own in dealing with critical issues such as Métis enumeration in Ontario… This is a bold and historic step and fundamental to self-government. We congratulate the Métis Nation of Ontario and give them our full support.”

The MNC’s formal November 1993 endorsement of the Métis Nation of Ontario built upon decades of Métis Nation recognition of and collaboration with historic Métis communities in what is now Ontario. This included their inclusion in Métis Nation Homeland maps developed prior to the MNO’s founding and the participation of delegates from Métis communities in Ontario during the Charlottetown Accord process in the early 1990s. 

In 1994, the Métis Nation of Ontario was formally accepted as a Métis National Council Governing Member alongside the Manitoba Métis Federation, Métis Nation – Saskatchewan, and Métis Nation of Alberta.

This history of recognition and numerous other acts of Métis Nation solidarity were highlighted in the Final Report of the Métis National Council’s Expert Panel, which once again affirmed that the seven historic Métis communities in northern Ontario “form an integral part of the Métis Nation and its Homeland.”

See Our Sources

• MNC Press Release from November 8, 1993

• Supreme Court of Canada Decision in R. v. Powley

• MNC’s Supreme Court Factum in Powley

• Clement Chartier Presents MNC’s Powley Intervention at SCC

• MNC Expert Panel Final Report

• MNO Statement of Prime Purpose

Mini Word Search

Have fun with the facts by completing today's mini word search.