English - Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies

population relates primarily to the legal recognition in 1992 by unanimous
resolution of the House of Commons and Senate and the definition of Métis in
the Powley case of 2003.
From the very beginning of European contact in North America, Métis peoples have
existed. The joining of European, primarily French settlers, and Native cultures
created a distinct and unique culture separate from both parent cultures.
While the Constitution Act in 1982 recognized the Métis as Aboriginal peoples, the
legal definition was not clear until the Powley court case in 2003. The case involved a
claim by two members of the Sault Ste. Marie Métis community, Stephen Powley and
his son Rodney, who were asserting their Métis hunting rights. The Supreme Court of
Canada outlined three broad factors to identify Métis right-holders:
> > self-identification as a Métis individual
> > ancestral connection to an historic Métis community
> > acceptance by a Métis community
All three factors must be present for an individual to qualify under the legal definition
of Métis, but there is still a great deal of ambiguity. There continues to be challenges
to the Métis falling under the “Aboriginal” definition with the government denying
access to services and programs.
HISTORY OF MÉTIS
Apihtaw’kosisan means a sort of half-son. This was translated into English as
Halfbreed. To the Ojibway, we are mixed-blood. They say wisahkotewinowak which
translates to mean where the fire has gone through and burnt everything, and new
shoots come up from the ground. That’s where the Métis come from; they were the
new Nation, the new shoots that come up from the ground from Mother Earth
(McCallum as cited in NAHO, 2008).
“Distinct Métis settlements emerged as an outgrowth of the fur trade, along freighting
waterways and watersheds in the Prairie provinces. In Ontario, these settlements
were part of larger regional communities, interconnected by the highly mobile
lifestyle of the Métis, the fur trade network, seasonal rounds, extensive kinship
connections and a shared collective history and identity.”
A distinct mixed-blood population began to emerge, who were neither European
nor Indigenous. Intermarriage among other mixed-blood people began to produce a
separate linguistic and cultural community by the early 1800s. Because of the active
involvement of this new, distinct mixed-blood population in the fur trade, their
population grew and their culture strengthened over time.
The Métis flag bears the infinity symbol which represents the coming together of two
distinct and vibrant cultures, those of European and indigenous North America, to
produce a distinctly new culture, the Métis. The flag symbolizes the creation of a new
society with roots in both Aboriginal and European cultures and traditions.
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