The Métis have always been a political people. Kelly Saunders and Janique Dubois draw on interviews with elders, leaders, and community members to reveal how the Métis are giving life to Louis Riel’s vision of a self-governing Métis Nation within Canada. They look to the Métis language – Michif – to identify Métis principles of governance that emerged during the fur trade and that continue to shape Métis governing structures. Both then and now, the Métis have engaged in political action to negotiate their place alongside federal and provincial partners in Confederation.
As Canada engages in nation-to-nation relationships to advance reconciliation, this book provides timely insight into the Métis Nation’s ongoing struggle to remain a free and self-governing Indigenous people.
Kelly Saunders is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at Brandon University. Her research on Métis politics, the symbolism of Louis Riel, and Métis self-government has been published in the Canadian Journal of Native Studies, the Canadian Journal of Political Science, and Canadian Public Administration.
Janique Dubois is an assistant professor in the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa. Her research on federalism, political activism, and constitution building has been published in domestic and international journals, including Nations and Nationalism and the Canadian Journal of Political Science.