The year 2016 was noteworthy for sa国际传媒鈥檚 M茅tis. First was the Daniels Supreme Court of sa国际传媒 decision, which in effect diluted the M茅tis waters, with the court writing: 鈥淭here is no consensus on who is considered M茅tis or a non-status Indian, nor need there be. Cultural and ethnic labels do not lend themselves to neat boundaries. 鈥淢茅tis鈥� can refer to the historic M茅tis community in Manitoba鈥檚 Red River Settlement or it can be used as a general term for anyone with mixed European and Aboriginal heritage.鈥�
Without consensus, the flood gates have opened, as evidenced by the 2016 census.
It tallied almost 588,000 Canadians who self-identified as M茅tis, a 50 per cent jump from 2006. In Nova Scotia, 27 years ago, there were 225 M茅tis, but by 2016, there were 23,310. In sa国际传媒, the M茅tis Nation sa国际传媒 reports there are 70,000 self-identified sa国际传媒 M茅tis, but only 16,500 registered M茅tis. The Manitoba homeland had 33,230 in 1991, reaching 89,360 by 2016.
One reason for the bewildering growth could be the 2003 Powley Supreme Court of sa国际传媒 decision, where the court laid out three nebulous conditions to determine M茅tis status: Be a member of a present-day M茅tis community; identify as a M茅tis person; have ties to a historic M茅tis community.
So what exactly is a M茅tis?
It looks as if author Joseph Boyden鈥檚 muddy claims would float. No need to get a copy of scrip or track down a baptismal record from 1833. But where do Newfoundland鈥檚 professed 7,790 M茅tis hang their sashes? Come By Chance perhaps? And what exactly does it mean to 鈥渋dentify鈥� as a M茅tis? Can you identify with the royal family and get on the bejewelled gravy train, or as a white person, identify with black people and write a Civil War novel?
I鈥檝e been a proud M茅tis since 2011, after completing the demanding, exhaustive process to prove that recent ancestors were French-Canadian and Aboriginal and hailed from M茅tis central, near Manitoba鈥檚 Red and Assiniboine rivers. To go beyond claiming that I was M茅tis, I had to find Manitoba baptismal records from the early 1800s, because there were no birth certificates.
A piece of Manitoba scrip from 1876 sealed the deal. Signed by my great-great-grandfather, Joseph Hamelin, considered a 鈥渉alf-breed,鈥� he agreed to be 鈥渆ntitled鈥� to 160 acres of land or $160 in the province of Manitoba.
Joseph鈥檚 maternal and paternal grandmothers, both named Angelique, were Saulteaux, Ojibwa and Chippewa. His wife Julie was also M茅tis, with American Indian blood. Back then, Red River carts rolled south to North Dakota during the time when buffalo stampeded across invisible borders.
Why does this matter? Because sa国际传媒鈥檚 growing Aboriginal population is asserting its rights, as it should. But with that, could it be that court cases, land claims, and the dollars and property that follow restitution are prompting some to get on the bandwagon? Did a robust birth rate or the obsession with finding one鈥檚 roots, no matter how shallow, account for the vast growth of the M茅tis population?
I did not get M茅tis status to acquire freebies or government handouts. Curiosity and pride in my heritage were motivators. My life is comfortable. Benefits should be left to true M茅tis who truly need help. It would be unconscionable of me to draw from a limited well, just as it would be for pretenders.
Late last year, I was troubled by the amount of time it was taking to get M茅tis Nation sa国际传媒 paperwork processed and wondered if it had something to do with the wave of those who 鈥渋dentify鈥� as M茅tis? The M茅tis Nation states that its programs and services are available to all who merely identify as M茅tis. They don鈥檛 require the citizenship card. My application for a 鈥渉arvesting鈥� licence would take more than four months to handle due to all the applications.
I sent repeated emails to the nation鈥檚 executive asking about this touchy subject and finally got a response from Michael Dumont, the nation鈥檚 Vancouver Island director. Dumont told me that the federal government intends to make sure those who claim M茅tis status possess verification. He added that people who self-identify might not have access to funds, and there are plans to 鈥渨eed out鈥� those who want to game the system. What it will take is a 鈥渧erified genealogy,鈥� Dumont said.
Verification is important, because as so-called M茅tis continue to come out of the woodwork, the meaning of M茅tis will be eroded. When an Aboriginal ancestor was eight or more generations away, should that count?
Not many countries can lay claim to having people who were a mix of Aboriginals, French and Scottish. They became a distinct people who spawned a colourful culture and language, Michif.
M茅tis are an intriguing part of sa国际传媒鈥檚 history and for many years were disparaged and shunned as 鈥渉alf breeds.鈥� Now that the tables have turned, those late to the party want to fallaciously partake in a reservation-only feast.
Shannon Moneo, a freelance writer, lives in Sooke.
