A number of Métis and political voices joined together for a virtual press conference this morning to announce they are calling on the federal government to exonerate Métis leader Louis Riel, in advance of the 135th anniversary of Riel’s hanging.
Several individuals spoke during the conference, including Paulette Dugay, president of the Union Nationale Métisse Saint-Joseph du Manitoba, who wrote Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller to make the formal request.
“The death of Louis Riel is the source of deep division in Canadian society and has led to a profound sense of injustice among the Métis people which still echoes today,” said Duguay, in an official press release.
Riel was hanged for treason in 1885, after leading the Métis people during the Northwest Rebellion. Leaders in the coalition said that Riel’s trial was unjust, based on a law that was not applicable in Canada, and deserves the attention of the federal government.
The Union Nationale Métisse Saint-Joseph du Manitoba had previously presented the exoneration request back in 2017, followed by an expression of support from Montreal mayor Denis Coderre, which was ultimately denied.
Senator Marilou McPhedran expressed her support for the demand during the recent conference, and the city council in Montreal has also tabled a motion asking the city to also formally endorse the demand.
The campaign is hoping the federal government will reconsider the request in light of the 135th-anniversary date and following the previous exoneration of Chief Poundmaker granted in 2019.
“We talk a lot about reconciliation and for the Métis people, it feels like it hasn’t gone anywhere, like it's stalled,” said Keith Henry, president of the B.C. Métis Federation. “We’re pushing to exonerate Louis Riel because it feels like an injustice.”
Henry said that because Riel is an important figure not only in Métis history, but in the history of Confederation as someone who fought for human rights for all Canadians, his current status as a traitor undermines his accomplishments and role as the founder of Manitoba.
Canada has already recognized Riel’s contributions to Canada and the Métis people, said the coalition, and exoneration would further impress upon Métis communities that the federal government is committed to reconciliation and repairing its relationship with all Indigenous populations.
“Canada has lacked diligence in addressing the [reconciliation] demands of the Métis,” said Rotrand. “We believe this important gesture can help move forward a more fruitful relationship between Canada and the Métis.”
With the letter sent, the campaign is looking for a response from the federal government in time for the anniversary of Riel’s execution on Nov. 16, either in the form of a legislated exoneration or a commitment to begin the work to do so immediately.
