The Conservative party should apologize to Canada’s Métis Nation for attacking their heritage through a smear campaign against the legacy of Métis leader and Manitoba founder Louis Riel, Liberal MPs said today.
“Louis Riel is a symbol of the struggles that Canada had to endure in our early history, and his legacy is a matter of national importance,” said Liberal MP for Winnipeg South Centre, Anita Neville. “Do Conservative MPs like Shelley Glover, who represents Saint Boniface, stand by this attack?”
Conservative MP Peter Goldring has issued a newsletter entitled “The Truth about Louis Riel” that “sets the record straight on Riel and his crimes,” smearing the legacy of the man who founded the province of Manitoba in 1870 and tried to achieve responsible government in Saskatchewan. Mr. Goldring calls Mr. Riel a “villain” and says efforts to “mount a statue to him on Parliament Hill would elevate anarchy and civil disobedience to that of democratic statesmanship.”
“The Conservative party has reopened a long-since healed wound by attacking the defender of the Métis people, the founder of Manitoba, and a Father of Confederation,” said Liberal Aboriginal Affairs Critic Todd Russell. “Mr. Riel fought to protect Métis rights and culture during a turbulent time for Métis people in our history.”
While Louis Riel is singled out by the Conservatives, historical figures like William Lyon Mackenzie and Louis Joseph Papineau, who also led armed rebellions to fight for responsible government, are not.
“Mr. Goldring’s nineteenth century mindset parrots the considerable discrimination Mr. Riel faced on behalf of Métis and French-speaking peoples,” said Liberal Heritage critic Pablo Rodriguez. “Without his efforts, the French-speaking community in Manitoba would not be nearly as strong as it is today.”
