The Treaty took 153 years to make, which shows how hard the Métis worked. MMF presiden
At a meeting on Saturday, about 4,000 people voted in favor of a treaty between the Manitoba Métis Federation and the Crown.
Will Goodon, the housing minister for the Manitoba Métis Federation, told CBC News on Sunday that voting took place at an assembly at Assiniboia Downs, online, and at eight satellite sites.
He said, “Yesterday was an amazing day, with so many people coming together to fix what was wrong with our people over 150 years ago.”
Goodon said that the Manitoba Act of 1870 was the only time that an Indigenous nation was able to negotiate the entry of a province into Confederation. However, promises made to the Métis about jobs and land were not kept after the act was passed.
Goodon said, “We were supposed to get 1.4 million acres of land for our children and river lots for our families, languages, and schools.”
“We didn’t have anywhere to live. We were forced to move around the world. We lived off the money we got for driving.”
Goodon said that the new treaty covers rights to education, housing, health care, child care, harvesting, and self-government. He said that the treaty is unique because it is between the Red River Métis people and the Crown.
David Chartrand, president of the MMF, said that the fact that the treaty took 153 years to make shows how determined the Métis are.
“We had to wait long. “Standing up for our history, culture, and rights has cost us a lot,” he told CBC News at the assembly on Saturday.
He said that it was likely the biggest group of MMF citizens that had ever been seen.
“There’s no doubt that [Louis] Riel is happy for us.”
Goodon said that the treaty builds on a self-governance deal that the MMF made with Canada two years ago. In September, the treaty will be signed in Manitoba by the prime minister or the minister of Indigenous Relations.
He said that the treaty recognizes the MMF’s right to make and follow its own laws.
“Today, at last, our people will be able to move forward.”