{"id":36908,"date":"2020-09-20T09:39:23","date_gmt":"2020-09-20T13:39:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/?p=36908"},"modified":"2020-09-20T09:39:23","modified_gmt":"2020-09-20T13:39:23","slug":"metis-nation-of-ontario-region-4-commemorates-powley-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/2020\/09\/20\/metis-nation-of-ontario-region-4-commemorates-powley-day\/","title":{"rendered":"M\u00e9tis Nation of Ontario Region 4 Commemorates Powley Day"},"content":{"rendered":"<iframe loading=\"lazy\"  id=\"_ytid_45289\"  width=\"620\" height=\"349\"  data-origwidth=\"620\" data-origheight=\"349\"  data-relstop=\"1\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/12K7l0-lHXA?enablejsapi=1&autoplay=0&cc_load_policy=0&cc_lang_pref=&iv_load_policy=1&loop=0&rel=0&fs=1&playsinline=0&autohide=2&theme=dark&color=red&controls=1&disablekb=0&\" class=\"__youtube_prefs__  no-lazyload\" title=\"YouTube player\"  allow=\"fullscreen; accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen data-no-lazy=\"1\" data-skipgform_ajax_framebjll=\"\"><\/iframe>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>M\u00e9tis Nation of Ontario \u2013 Region 4, consisting of the Historic Sault Ste. Marie and North Channel M\u00e9tis Community Councils, along with our citizens, will pause this weekend to commemorate the 17th anniversary of our landmark victory in the Powley decision and to pay tribute to the man who led our community in this hunt for justice.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>144 years after his ancestors stood up for M\u00e9tis rights during the Mica Bay Resistance, a humble M\u00e9tis man, Steve Powley and his son, Roddy \u2013 shot a bull moose and tagged it with his M\u00e9tis card and a note that read \u201charvesting my meat for winter.\u201d This simple act of compassionate defiance led to an epic battle in the courts, with Steve Powley leading the way and the entire M\u00e9tis Nation, from Ontario to British Columbia, rallying around him. The victory was summed up in unique M\u00e9tis oratory style by a well-known prairie M\u00e9tis leader, Gerald Morin who said, \u201cPowley was a slam dunk, 9 to nothing, kick ass decision for the whole M\u00e9tis Nation. What the Powleys did, it was for all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Sadly, the Creator called Steve Powley home not long after his victory, and the M\u00e9tis Nation has been left to take what he fought for and protect and defend it in his stead. \u201cAt that time, when Steve was first charged &#8211; right through to when the Supreme Court made their decision, it is often joked that the M\u00e9tis couldn\u2019t even get the parliamentary janitor to talk to us, never mind having the government respect us, our history or our rights \u2013 no one in government, and far too few in this country wanted to acknowledge our existence \u2013 Powley changed all of that\u201d said Mitch Case, Region 4 Councilor, Provisional Council of the M\u00e9tis Nation of Ontario.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In the years since the Powley decision, the political and legal landscape for the M\u00e9tis Nation has shifted dramatically. From the 2004 MNO-Ontario Harvesting Agreement and 2008 MNO-Ontario Framework Agreement to the Canada-M\u00e9tis Nation Accord and the 2019 M\u00e9tis Government Recognition and Self-Government Agreement, the M\u00e9tis Nation has secured victory after victory in our quest for justice and recognition.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>MNO Region 4 wants to encourage our citizens to take time to reflect on all that has been sacrificed in order to defend our rights. We encourage families to talk with their children about our community\u2019s history, tell them of the way we have persisted, resisted and continue to be proud of our unique M\u00e9tis identity. Tell them how hard our leaders have fought to ensure that they could still proudly say they are M\u00e9tis.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was not an accident that Steve and Roddy were charged that day in the fall of 1993, they had discussed it, they talked about it with their family, their community \u2013 they were tired of hiding, tired of \u201cskulking through the woods like common criminals.\u201d Judge Vallencourt put in his ruling. \u201cThere is much more to this story and we are going to be doing more work to tell that story\u201d said Case. \u201cWe have so much to be proud of.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPowley Day is an important day for M\u00e9tis people because it gives us an opportunity to celebrate the recognition of our right to hunt and fish; a practice reinforced by Steve and Roddy by hunting that day for their family. It was a very proud day for all M\u00e9tis people\u201d said Yvonne Jensen, President of the North Channel M\u00e9tis Council.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Supreme Court recognition of our rights has been so important for our community\u201d said Kim Powley, President of the Historic Sault Ste. Marie M\u00e9tis Council. \u201cMy father and brother did not set out to make history, they were simply trying to live their lives as M\u00e9tis people as our family had always done. I sometimes wish it wasn\u2019t called \u201cPowley Day\u201d because it wasn\u2019t about us, it was about our people and our collective rights. None of what was accomplished could have been done if the whole Nation had not come together; from the community volunteers, to MNO staff, lawyers and political leadership. When M\u00e9tis people come together, we can achieve great things.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>For many years, the Historic Sault Ste. Marie M\u00e9tis Council has recognized this day by hosting a community feast. In light of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the feast will not be held this year but the Council hosted Sunrise Ceremony to pray and pay tribute to those M\u00e9tis leaders who have gone on. The ceremony took place on September 19, 2020 at the Algoma University Fire Arbour, in partnership with Algoma University Anishinaabe Initiatives Division. All necessary COVID-19 precautions were observed.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>As the Regional Government for the M\u00e9tis Communities in the Sault Ste. Marie, Superior East and Huron North Shore, MNO Region 4 encourages Canadians and Ontarians to take time this September 19 to learn about the Powley Case, learn about the history of the M\u00e9tis in the Upper Great Lakes and take time to reflect. Ask yourself, \u201cWhat am I doing to further reconciliation with the M\u00e9tis people?\u201d \u201cIn what ways have I contributed to the M\u00e9tis being largely overlooked in our community?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>For those looking to learn more about the M\u00e9tis in the Sault Ste. Marie Region, or about M\u00e9tis Rights, some links are provided below.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Sault Ste. Marie Historic M\u00e9tis Community Fact Sheet &#8211; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.metisnation.org\/media\/654039\/joint-fact-sheet-sault-ste-marie-18-august-2017-final.pdf\">http:\/\/www.metisnation.org\/media\/654039\/joint-fact-sheet-sault-ste-marie-18-august-2017-final.pdf<\/a><\/li>\n<li>MNO Historic Research &#8211; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.metisnation.org\/registry\/citizenship\/historic-research\/\">http:\/\/www.metisnation.org\/registry\/citizenship\/historic-research\/<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Powley Day message from President Froh &#8211; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.metisnation.org\/news-media\/news\/powley-day-2020\/\">http:\/\/www.metisnation.org\/news-media\/news\/powley-day-2020\/<\/a><\/li>\n<li>APTN Powley Feature &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=JkXRk7Bvk-g\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=JkXRk7Bvk-g<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Powley Case Summary &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca\/en\/article\/powley-case\">https:\/\/www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca\/en\/article\/powley-case<\/a><\/li>\n<li>M\u00e9tis Government Recognition and Self- Government Agreement Video &#8211;\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=m8SGenHUW2c\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=m8SGenHUW2c<\/a><\/li>\n<li>M\u00e9tis Nation of Ontario Documentary &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WSniHvhnAaU\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WSniHvhnAaU<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; M\u00e9tis Nation of Ontario \u2013 Region 4, consisting of the Historic Sault Ste. Marie and North Channel M\u00e9tis Community Councils, along with our citizens, will pause this weekend to commemorate the 17th anniversary of our landmark victory in the Powley decision and to pay tribute to the man who led our community in this &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":36909,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[2704],"class_list":["post-36908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community","tag-metis"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-26 14:21:06","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36908","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36908"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36908\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36910,"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36908\/revisions\/36910"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36909"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36908"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36908"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wawa-news.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36908"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}